Al Potter and the Incident of the Time Turner
by Hasane-chan
Summary: "The feeling of traveling through time, especially at the extent of traveling years, was strange. It was as if their insides were being squeezed and then stretched. So, not pleasant to say the least." TIME TRAVEL, FUTURE GENERATION
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: First multi chapter story. This is mostly just me experimenting with writing techniques, pacing, word usage, etc. Please review, I'd like your criticisms.**

James Potter II, Albus Potter, Rose Weasley, Scorpius Malfoy, and Lillia Potter (known to be Lily) were currently gathered around in the Headmaster's office, nervous at what's to come. They didn't know much for they hadn't done anything wrong or had been caught in the act of doing a prank, not that they do many of those anyways.

"...Okay, so we're here. What now?" Albus Potter broke through the silence.

"I'm not sure, Al. All I know that Professor McGonagall came to us and asked us to speak with Professor Dumbledore," Rose replied, a little wary at being called to the Headmaster's office.

Lily looked up at that. "He does? We should talk to him then. No point in waiting, it must be really urgent."

"Indeed it is my dear," Albus Dumbledore's portrait cut in. "I need you to do something for me. You see, I need you to look in that top drawer, the password is 'Sherbet Lemons.' There, you should find a gold chain with a sand glass, a note, and phoenix tears. I need you to turn the rings surrounding the sand glass twenty-five times and then pour the phoenix tears on it. The note will explain your situation to whoever you bump in to."

"But sir, that oddly sounds like a time turner and phoenix tears amplify the effect of anything. We could go back twenty-five years instead of the usual twenty-five hours! Isn't that dangerous?" Scorpius interjected.

"You are very right. But you see, while the Golden Trio were at school, there was a strange occurrence where seven people came to the past, which included you five. In accordance, you will go, as to not disrupt the flow of time, however strange it may be. You all may be thinking it would be better to not go at all, but I was erased of anything you did there, so I do not know if you have done anything of importance. It would be safer." Dumbledore had a solemn look on his face, as if they didn't have a choice in the matter. They didn't.

The group looked at each other, with varying looks of worry and interest.

Lily broke the tension with, "Seven? There's only five here. And our current parents? Will they know?"

"The sixth and seventh will come later, sometime after you. Yes, of course. The only three people who are aware of this are Harry and Ginny Potter and Professor McGonagall, but even they have limited knowledge," Dumbledore replied.

"...Then I suppose we should go. I mean it's our parents. If they knew, they'd protect us, I think. Nineteen ninety-five was the height of Voldemort's power, and anything after are dangerous times. We are skilled enough for our own defense," Rose agreed, although not without doubt.

"And nobody is going to mention that Al and I are Slytherin? Or the fact that we are literally going into the past? There are many prejudices against the Malfoys, who knows what could happen?" Scorpius voiced.

"You make a fair point, Scorpius. But you need to remember we are very stubborn. We'll teach them Slytherins aren't evil and neither are the Malfoys! We'll shove it down their throats if we have to," James said, while grinning.

Scorpius gave him a thankful look and moved to open the drawer.

"Gather around, I suppose," Scorpius said.

They did, and Scorpius did as the previous headmaster told.

The time turner glowed with the added Phoenix tears. It engulfed the five teens with its sand curling around them, and they were gone.

 **OoOoO**

The feeling of traveling through time, especially at the extent of traveling _years_ , was strange. It was as if their insides were being squeezed and then stretched. So, not pleasant, to say the least.

Al Potter almost threw up, but didn't. He was the first to land on the floor, which was cold and hard, thank you very much. He'd cleaned himself up, only to be crashed into by the other four people on this journey with him.

After saying a few very obscene words, he finally looked around and saw the familiar corridor that he'd walked for five and a half long years. It was empty, thankfully. The others were also looking around, and Rose already seemed to be formulating a plan. Aw, what a sweet angel.

"Alright, so if I'm right, we should be exactly twenty five years back. We came back to Hogwarts a day early before Christmas break ends for whatever reason, so this should be the exact date it was in the future… in the past. I don't think Professor Dumbledore would have sent us back if he wasn't here at the school… So I think we should find him," Rose rattled off the top of her head.

"Rosie, honey, you're always right. And your theory sounds right, so let's go with it," James said while looking around.

"Let's go then, we don't want to be here should anybody walk in this hallway," Scorpius said while walking towards the Headmaster's office. The others started walking as well, not far behind.

Al followed him as well, but not before pocketing the time turner and phoenix tears.

 **OoOoO**

"Now what? It's not as if we can barge in and say, 'Oh hello, we are people from the future and we sent by you for cryptic reasons unknown to us.' They'd think us lunatics. We don't know the password either," Scorpius said while eyeing the gargoyle statues.

"Check that note that came with the time turner, maybe he included it in there," Lily suggested.

"Wouldn't hurt," Scorpius muttered. "Sent back here… kids from the future… don't harm them… Oh! Here it is! Cadbury Chocolate!"

The gargoyles rumbled and moved out of their way. Scorpius walked in, only to walk back out.

"Al, you go in first. I think the Headmaster would, ah, warm up to a _familiar_ face. Considering I look like somebody who I think doesn't like," Scorpius said.

Al glanced at him and walked in. There he saw the previous headmaster, in all his _not dead_ glory. He was currently looking down intently on a piece of parchment.

Al tried to work up the courage to speak up but the headmaster got there first.

"Oh, hello there, Harry. I thought you were with the Weasleys? Back so early?" Dumbledore questioned.

"Oh, umm, you see that's the thing... We're kind of in a mess right now... I'm not Harry. We kind of crashed here, for lack of a better word. We were asked to come here by a future you, if that makes any sense at all," Al stuttered out uncharacteristically.

A flash of confusion came but disappeared just as quickly as it came. Dumbledore jovially said, "Alright, then. Sit down. Lemon drop?"

The group smiled.

 **OoOoO**

"So, would you mind introducing yourselves for a start? Full names please," Dumbledore prompted them.

James stood up and said, "Well, I'm James Sirius Potter. The blonde one over there is Scorpius... Malfoy. The look alike of Harry Potter is Albus Potter. The one with red wavy hair is Rose Eleanor Weasley and the one with straight red hair Lillia Luna Potter. Would that be enough?"

Dumbledore looked quite honored and happy at one of the children being named after him. He fixed his composure and said, "Yes, that should quite do it. Now, would you tell me your situation?"

"Well, you see, Professor McGonagall sent us to her office saying that we had to talk to you. You told us that we had go back in time because that's what happened in our parents' lives and it wouldn't do to disturb the order of things. And voila! Here we are. We also have a note that might explain some things." Al took out the note. "Here you go."

Dumbledore looked at it and said, "Hmm, this is quite a conundrum. I will let you stay here. You will be introduced as new students but you will have notice-me-not charms on you that need to be replaced every month, should you be staying that long. The only people who will notice you are people who want to and take an interest in you. Now, I need your houses and the names you will be using to disguise yourselves."

"I think Jamie Lionheart for me, Lily Anne Lionheart for Lily, and Alex Lionheart for Al? Scorpius and Rose can keep their names but their last names should be Green and Young, respectively," James suggested.

"That's all good and well but Lionheart? That would be kind of ironic for Al, don't you think?" Rose inquired.

"If you have anything better, then go ahead Rosie," James said while sitting back down.

Rose stayed quiet.

"Anyways, I'm Gryffindor as is Rose, Al is Slytherin as well as Scorpius. Lily is in Ravenclaw," James continued.

"Quite a few houses, I see. I'll get this all sorted by tomorrow. You will be new students from different school. You came here because your parents decided to move here. Your room assignments will be given tomorrow. The only person who will know the truth is Professor McGonagall," Dumbledore said.

"Alright, thank you very much!" Rose said.

 **OoOoO**

"So? What do you think?" Rose asked.

"Could have been worse. I mean it would be really interesting to see what our parents were like when they were younger," Al mused.

"We were lucky we weren't sent off to Azkaban the moment he saw us! I thought he was going to call us Death Eaters or something," James said.

"Yeah... Anyways, want to go to the kitchens for something to eat? And then we coil go to the Room of Requirement for sleeping. We don't yet know our dorm rooms," Lily said tiredly.

"Yeah, we should..." Scorpius said.

The group ate and then slept after such a tiring and busy day. Nobody knew what was coming for them and they slept with this unsettling thought in their hearts.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Update so quick? Strange, I know. I had this chapter pre-written. I'm on chapter five now. Enjoy and review. I'd appreciate your criticisms.**

You know, most of the time, new students are introduced. As in, the current students are told their name and they are promptly sorted. The time travelers had to beg as so not be introduced like that. Because, you know, people wouldn't exactly take it well if a snake was sitting with the lions. Snakes just don't roll that way.

Al was staring down at his food, and the din of the Great Hall was almost nonexistent. People were unabashedly staring at him, some even going so far as to make snide comments about him. The Gryffindors took no shame in giving him and Scorpius glares. Scorpius was mimicking him, but he was squirming under all the attention. Back in the future, they stared at him the first year and then ignored him. Why were the damn notice-me-not charms not working?!

Lily and James, it seemed, had had enough of this. The sound of air being cut was heard and then, "Al. Come on, get up. You're not going to let this just keep happening are you?"

Al looked up and sighed which could barely be heard. "Yeah, you're right. Come on Scor, let's go."

The group picked up their belongings and walked out the Great Hall.

"I knew the prejudice was this bad, but…" Rose trailed away.

"I know, what can we do? We all just have to ignore it," James sighed.

 _What a great way to start the day_ , Al thought sarcastically.

"Uhmm… I'm sorry, but I'm the prefect for Gryffindor… I'm supposed to show you around the castle and to your dorms. I can also show you to the Slytherin and Ravenclaw dorms if you'd like? The Slytherin prefects refused to help _blood-traitors_ ," The unknown voice spit out the word like venom.

Al looked over at the new voice and would have comically spit his drink if he had one. Good thing he was good at hiding his emotions.

Anyways, the girl in question was Hermione Granger. She had bushy hair and an embarrassed look etched upon her face.

"That sounds nice. Thank you very much," Al coolly replied along with a disarming smile.

Her face changed from embarrassment to one of surprise but nonetheless continued to help them.

 **OoOoO**

The Christmas holidays had just ended, and Hermione was ready to start another boring semester. Any sense of home and warmth was destroyed by the pink clad she-demon. Umbridge, of course.

Hermione sighed. She looked around the Great Hall and then closer at the Gryffindor table. Hermione thought she saw flash of green around here. It turned out that there was and she wasn't hallucinating and there were Slytherins sitting here. Two of them, in fact. If she looked closer, she could see that one of them was an exact replica of Harry and the other Draco. They both had slight differences, which couldn't be caught if one only glanced at them.

She at first thought they were lost, because they were part of the five new students. But then she saw the other three sitting there, one of which was a Ravenclaw and the other two Gryffindors.

She couldn't for the love of her figure out why they were sitting there and decided to let it go. She looked at Ron and Harry to gauge their response. Ron was looking at them as if he had ate something sour permanently, and Harry looked on in mild confusion.

She looked away from them and saw the red and straight haired girl along with the girl next to her get up. They said something and their other lackeys, for lack of a better word, left with them.

Hermione was a little surprised and scrambled to follow them. She could hear Ron say something but didn't pay any attention to him.

She heard the bushy haired girl say something along the lines of, "...prejudice was this bad, but…"

She let them finish and started talking. "Uhmm… I'm sorry, but I'm the prefect for Gryffindor… I'm supposed to show you around the castle and to your dorms. I can also show you to the Slytherin and Ravenclaw dorms if you'd like? The Slytherin prefects refused to help _blood-traitors."_ She loathed to use that word.

The Harry look-a-like seemed mildly surprised at seeing her but took her presence in stride and said, "That sounds nice. Thank you very much."

Hermione was a little surprised at that. She admits that even she was a little biased against Slytherins due to sour experiences with them.

She showed them around and went back to Harry and Ron.

"Who was that you were with?" Harry asked, unconcerned about her helping Slytherins.

She answered, "The new students. You know, one of them looked exactly like you. The resemblance was uncanny, you should see it yourself. Also, it really is quite strange that they appeared in the middle of the school year, don't you think? I thought they'd at least come at the start of the school year. They weren't even sorted before breakfast started!"

"Hmm, really?" Harry said, distracted.

She sighed again, a tiny bit in annoyance. Her questions were left unanswered but she supposed it was a hard year for all of them so she let him off the hook. Ron seemed to have decided to look anywhere but her. Hermione ignored the feelings of hurt.

The bell rung, indicating the start of the start of the day of classes. She was not looking forward to it.

 **OoOoO**

Normally, Al looked forward to Defense Against the Dark Arts. But this bitch seemed hell bent on not teaching them anything. They were forced to read the textbook. Al tried. He really did.

Then, he snapped. He raised his hand and spoke with as much respect he could muster, "Professor Umbridge, why is it that we are only reading from the text and not practicing the art as well?"

Umbridge looked up, her face permanently frozen to look like she ate an entire lemon. It seemed somebody already questioned about this. She took no time in finding a fault. "Hand _up,_ Mr. Lionheart!"

"It was, Miss," Al said as innocently as he could. "You still haven't my answered question."

Everybody now was paying rapt attention, interested in how Al was going to handle this.

This only angered Umbridge more and she replied, "I do not need to answer your irrelevant questions."

"Oh, but it is completely relevant, Miss, as it has to do with the class. And as a teacher, shouldn't it be your _job_ to answer the students' questions?" Al said in an infuriatingly calm way.

Al glanced at his young father, and saw that there was something reminiscent of a smile dancing on his lips. Al smiled slightly.

Umbridge, on the other hand, was practically radiating anger and bit out in a cold but sickeningly sweet voice, "Detention, Mr. Lionheart."

Al raised a cool brow and said, "Alright." Then for the cherry on top, he smiled.

The class was highly amused. Hermione was smiling a bit and Ron was trying to hold down a look of awe. Only Harry had a look of worry, but it was gone as soon as he saw it.

 **OoOoO**

Al should've known that a wretched vile such as her would resort to using _blood quills_ as punishment. After nearly four hours later, dinner was nearly over. Students were piling out in small groups, to go back to their common rooms.

His hand was bloodied and it throbbed in hot, searing pain. On it was written over and over, 'I will not disobey or question the teacher's methods.' Although, now it just looked like a jumble of words.

He was currently walking towards the Gryffindor common room, knowing that James would hang out there. He hoped he knew a cure or something to numb the pain.

Lost in his thoughts, he did not see Harry walking his way. He unceremoniously crashed into him.

Al got up, a little peeved. He looked up and immediately looked sorry and apologized. Harry accepted it and Al decided there was no better time than the present to talk to him.

"So, where are you headed? Oh, by the way, I'm Alex Lionheart," Al introduced himself.

"Harry Potter. And I'm going to the Gryffindor common room," Harry replied.

"Well, you're going the wrong way buddy," Al said, laughing just a tiny bit.

"No, I'm not... Wait. Oh." Harry looked sheepish.

"Are you okay? You seem distracted," Al asked, worry creeping into his voice.

"I'm fine," Harry replied automatically, in an almost monotone and practiced way.

Al looked down at Harry's hands. When he gently took them, there lied many scars and wounds, some old and some fresh. His eyes instantly narrowed.

"You are not alright. Come with me," Al said sharply, carefully pulling him along.

"Look at you, worrying about me when you're hurt yourself. Where are we going anyways?" Harry asked, without malice.

"Am I not allowed to? We're going exactly where we intended to, the Gryffindor common room," Al said.

It turned out James was there. He took one look at their hands, eyes filled with worry, and said, "Gauze, wet towels, and Essence of Murtlap."

 **OoOoO**

"This is it. I absolutely hate Defense," Scorpius sighed.

The small group was outside sitting by the Black Lake. It was a sunny day and fluffy clouds adorned the sky.

"I know. That bitch is fucking crazy, crazy I tell you!" Al threw his hands up.

"Yeah, apparently she wants us to learn how to do the spell just by learning the theory. The final exam isn't going to be like that…" James said. "But we could just practice by ourselves. I'm not the best teacher but we could work it out for ourselves."

"Or we could join the D.A. Uncle Harry was a wonderful teacher, according to Aunt Ginny," Rose suggested.

"Yeah, but remember, we're new here. We're not supposed to know. If we brought it up with them, it would raise suspicion and blow our cover," Al said.

"Yeah, let's just do it ourselves. Should they invite us, we'll join, no questions asked. We'll start now, I'll bring the textbooks," Lily said.

She had gotten the books and said, "Do you suppose we should do refreshers first? I think I need help with Expelliarmus."

"That was the first one dad taught us," James said. I think the movement is—" he demonstrated it "—and that should be it. You either look at the arms you need to expel or picture it. But you'd have to a really good photographic memory."

"Okay, okay..." Lily trailed.

They'd continued for hours on end practicing and talking amiably. Anybody who saw them from afar would see sparks, tiny bursts of color, and five kids who seemed to be enjoying themselves. Incidentally, two people did.

Harry and Hermione were walking out to the Black Lake (to do what? who knows) and saw them. Hermione, being the prefect, immediately decided to see what they're doing.

"...know she still hasn't confronted me about the whole Shakespeare's debacle... I'm kind of scared?" Hermione heard Al say while lazily playing with his wand. She didn't want to know.

"Hello. What are you five up too?" Hermione asked.

Rose jumped a little and even Al seemed a tiny bit surprised.

"Oh, hello, Hermione, if I may call you that," Rose said. "We were just practicing our spells for Defense. That ha-" she stumbled, "Umbridge isn't teaching us anything. It's only been a week, but we're tired of putting up with her. I guess you could say this is kind of a thinly veiled rebellion?"

"Freeform magic isn't allowed I believe," Hermione said.

"No, it is. Magic is allowed as long you are on the campus of the school," Rose said.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Wouldn't it be better to hide yourselves?"

"We could easily hide ourselves but it would only make us more of a target. If we do it openly, they'll just think we are not doing anything bad and walk away. And technically, we aren't. It only works with smaller groups," Rose said.

Harry whistled. "Smart."

"Thank you," Rose said sincerely.

Hermione gave a questioning ( _can they join_ , it said) look to Harry. He nodded.

Hermione sketched a privacy bubble and said, "We understand where you are coming from. And in order to better protect ourselves, we've sort of created an army? Group? Club? Whatever it is. Harry here is the leader."

Harry gave a pointed look to her.

Ignoring it, she continued, "Maybe you five would like to join? It would be more organized and more effective."

Rose's brows furrowed. "We appreciate the thought, thank you. But I don't think Slytherins would be well accepted. For a week I've observed and Slytherins are hated with a passion. We don't know how your people would take it."

"We'll take care of that," Hermione brushed off quickly.

Rose looked to her friends. Murmurs of agreement filled the short silence.

Hermione brightened. "Okay, just sign here!"


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hello, it's been a while hasn't it. A week isn't much but to you guys I suppose it is. It has been a hard week, with exams and all. Anyways, enjoy and review. I'd appreciate it.**

A month and some odd days had passed from the day the five had gotten here. It was only a few days away from the Hogsmeade weekend for Valentine's Day. Today they were at one of the D.A meetings scheduled practicing a well-known spell in the army: Expecto Patronum.

Everybody around was concentrated and doing the wand movements, trying to bring a good memory. Ron, Hermione, and Harry had already achieved this and are now helping others out, pointing out mistakes. Most everybody had been getting wisps of silver.

Al heard someone laugh in happiness. It was that girl who always hung out with Cho, Marietta Edgecombe. He looked over and saw that she had summoned a corporeal patronus, a dove. It glided in the air gracefully, doing a few tricks and then fading out. Al heard a "great job Marietta" from Harry and Cho.

Most everybody in his group had already accomplished it. But Al always had trouble conjuring one and most of the time only could summon wisps. The fact that his mind was a jumbled mess didn't help. He couldn't think straight and everything was just all mixed together, with no difference between them. It was just one of those days where his body is functioning but his mind was somewhere else. It was hard to discern a good memory from a bad one. Unknown to him, he was just using the wrong memories.

He looked at his siblings' and friends' patronuses. James' was a hummingbird, Scorpius' was a horde of crows, Rose's was a deer (which brought up a little suspicion due to the similar nature to Harry's patronus), and Lily's was a rabbit.

"Are you concentrating on a happy memory? Remembering it isn't enough, you have to feel as if you're experiencing it for the first time," James coached.

"Jamie, I know that. Don't you think it would be a lot more helpful if I actually had a happy memory?" Al snapped.

James was about to respond, but was cut off by Harry. "Hello, do you need any help?"

"Thank you for the offer, Harry. But I think I need accomplish the first step: remembering a happy memory," Al said.

"Oh. Really though, nothing? Surely there must be one," Harry persisted.

"Well, what about that time when Dad was teaching us this spell? None of us accomplished anything that day, but it was nice to just hang out with him and talking, practicing the spell… That was happy wasn't it?" James suggested, rubbing his hand on Al's back in what was supposed to be a comforting gesture.

"I hadn't thought of that one yet. Yeah, I'll try it," Al said.

He remembered that day well. That day, his dad had a rare day off. He had decided to spend it with the kids and had even invited Scorpius over. It was only three years back but it was ingrained into his memory. Dad was either laughing or smiling happily the whole time. Luna was there behind him, her head on his shoulder and a dreamy (but mirthful) smile. Lysander and Lorcan were playing without a care in the world. Their laughs rung out into the open air.

They were out in the backyard which extended farther into a meadow of sorts. The sun was shining merrily and not a cloud in a sky. The wind was blowing lazily. It was one of the best moments he'd had after the whole divorce ordeal. It could be considered one of the happier moments in his life.

Al's body relaxed and his mind was starting to come back to him, slowly but surely. He was now feeling happiness, joy, excitement all in one fleeting emotion. This was enough to fuel the spell and from the tip of his wand an animal started forming. It was a fox. It ran around in the air, running circles around Al in a playful way, and then finally fading away in silver wisps.

Al bubbled up in happiness and smiled. "Look Harry, I did it!"

Harry looked over, smiled, and said, "Wonderful job Al, I knew you could do it."

Al didn't stop smiling for the rest of the day.

 **OoOoO**

The Hogsmeade weekend had arrived. Valentine's Day had already passed but Hogwarts was still filled with a chipper mood, couples taking the chance to act couple like. All around, there were decorations that pink and red, and tiny fairy like Cupids flew around. It was not 'we're going to shove this down your throat' but rather a subtle sort of feeling.

Breakfast was almost over. Everybody was getting checked to see if they had permission to go to Hogsmeade.

"Think we can get by Filch?" James questioned.

"Wouldn't hurt," Al said.

" _Wouldn't hurt,_ " James mocked. "On the contrary Al, I think we might get a few broken bones."

Al shot a glare at him. "Then why ask? Besides, we don't really have any purpose to go."

"It was rhetorical! I want to go because it gets boring here sometimes, as strange as that sounds," James said.

"Fine, fine whatever," Al conceded.

"It's too bad Scorpius and Rose aren't coming," Lily said.

"Yes, yes, because they wanted 'alone time.' Couldn't they be vaguer about stuff like that?" James questioned.

Lily slapped him on the arm. "You know that they're more innocent than that! Besides, the only thing I can see those two doing right now is reading a book together and cuddling."

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," James said in an offhanded manner.

They had reached Filch, who peered at them suspiciously. "Names?"

"Jamie, Alex, and Lily Anne Lionheart," Lily replied.

"Pass," Filch grudgingly said.

James sighed. "Cutting it close aren't we? Headmaster really did take care of everything."

"Yeah, that was nice of him. Let's go find a carriage, I want to see the thestrals again!" Al said happily.

"You sound like Luna," James laughed. "Nice. Anyways, let's go to that carriage over there."

Walking over, Al said, "Hello! Mind if we sit here with you?"

The people in question was the Golden Trio. _What luck we have_ , Al thought wryly.

Harry looked mildly surprised and said, "Sure." Ron, however, was sporting a sour look (you could almost call it constipated).

Al ignored it and walked around towards the thestrals. He started petting them and said, "Hello. How are you?"

The thestral leaned closer to show its happiness.

He heard Hermione whisper, "Is he talking to nothing?"

Harry whispered back, "For the last time Hermione, they're thestrals! Only certain people can see them!"

Al walked back, and he thought he heard a small "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," he whispered back to nothing.

The ride was fairly quiet but it was ruined because of Ron's (not so) menacing glare. If looks could kill, the whole of Slytherin would have been dead a long, long time ago.

James looked at him and said sweetly, "You know, it is quite rude to stare. You're acting like he's going to shove snakes down your throat."

Harry let out a tiny laugh but immediately covered it up with a cough at Ron's vicious glare.

James continued, "I understand that these are hard times with the return of Voldemort and you don't know who to trust. Not all Slytherins agree with the way of things, you know."

Hermione and Ron flinched at the name.

"... Return of Voldemort? Wait, so you... believe me?" Harry said, unbelieving at what they said.

"Of course we do. There's no one more trustworthy," Lily said.

Harry blushed and looked down at his shoes.

Al smiled. "It's nice to see modesty, it's often rare these days."

Ron saw where the conversation was headed and immediately diverted it by, "If you say you're not a normal Slytherin, then what is your opinion about muggleborns and purebloods?"

"I could write a whole book on this but its better explained with a metaphor. You have a brown egg and a white egg but crack them open, it's all the same," Al said.

It was obvious that that wasn't the answer Ron was expecting but was satisfied nonetheless. Hermione looked happy and Harry was relieved to have more people who believed him.

 **OoOoO**

The three had split up, James and Lily going to The Three Broomsticks, while Al wandered aimlessly. He was almost about to meet with James and Lily but stopped short when he saw Luna Lovegood sitting alone but contently reading a book whilst sipping gillywater with onion.

Al walked over to where she was and sat down. "Hello. How are you?"

Luna looked up slowly, her protuberant eyes looking interested. She said dreamily, "Hullo. Why are you here?"

"Hi. I'm here because I want to be. I'm Alex. And you are?" Al asked.

"Luna Lovegood. Oh, that's nice," Luna said, looking back to her book.

"Why did you come here if you aren't going to go to the shops? Fresh air, possibly?" Al said conversationally.

"Yes, that's it," Luna said.

"Don't talk much do you?" Al questioned.

"No. People don't talk usually talk to me, so why are you? Haven't you heard the rumors? 'Don't talk to Loony Lovegood?'" Luna said.

Al almost had the right mind to look hurt but opted it out. She was only stating the facts with no pity for her in her voice.

"One: Yes, I have heard the rumors but why should I listen to them, with no basis or fact? You seemed much to interesting for me not to talk to. Two: Is this your way of telling me to leave you alone? Because I will if you want me too," Al explained.

Luna smiled. "Oh no, that's fine. I had to figure out why you were here before I talked to you. I'd be glad for your company."

Al smiled in relief.

"Has anyone told you look much like Harry Potter? But you don't have many wrackspurts like him," Luna said randomly.

"Yes, many times actually. It's what people use to bully me with but I take no mind to them. After all they don't matter much to me, so why should their opinion? I'd only listen if they had something good to say," Al said.

"Yes, I suppose," Luna said, looking far off.

"So, have you ever been into Honeydukes before?" Al asked.

"Oh, no. The students always seem to find ways to keep me out. Says they don't want my presence ruining the candy," Luna said.

"That's stupid. How can someone's presence ruin candy? How about I take you? If you'll let me," Al offered.

Luna smiled dreamily and said, "That would be wonderful, thank you."

Al smiled back and started walking towards the sweets shop.

Luna began, "You know, your aura doesn't fit in. It's very strange."

Al didn't stop. "What's that?"

"It's a presence that only blind people can 'feel.' Those who can see and feel it are very few. Yours doesn't seem like it's from this time. It doesn't fit the picture," Luna explained.

"You don't mind a privacy charm do you?" Al didn't wait for her answer.

"You're sharp as ever aren't you, _Auntie?_ Yeah, you're right. Long story short, we had an 'incident' with a time turner and here we are. That's what Dumbledore wants to tell people should they find out but I know I can trust you. He sent us here actually, there was no choice. Even though my dad loved him, he was also manipulative so sometimes you have to be careful. He always hiding things," Al said.

"Yes, I suppose so. So, you're Harry Potter's?" Luna questioned.

"Yeah, not very hard to figure out. And you know my brother and sister: Jamie and Lily. You are technically my Auntie," Al said.

"Oh, you must be a very nice person if Harry raised you. And we're still friends?" Luna asked.

"Yeah," Al said. "But you believe that I'm me because he's just Harry and not the Boy-Who-Lived?"

"Yes," Luna said.

"People like you are very few but I guess that's why I've always liked you," Al said.

The day was spent chatting happily and walking around. Luna was good company and talked about strange things but it never bothered him. Soon, it was time to go.

"Thanks so much for hanging out with me today," Al said while smiling gratefully. "Would you like to join me on the carriages? Or plan on walking back?"

"Oh, I think I'll just walk. The scenery is quite beautiful today," Luna said dreamily.

"Alright, I'll see you later," Al said, walking to the carriages.

James automatically waved him over. He was already sitting with Lily and their previous company. "Spend the day with Luna?"

"Yeah, she's good company. _But you know, she knows our secret now. She's way too bright for her own good..."_ Al whispered.

"Oh, well I trust it to be in good hands. It's never good to keep things secret for too long," James said.

"Says the one who keeps so many," Al replied snarkily.

"But I've come out with them eventually," James said defensively.

Lily rolled her eyes and said, "Brothers, am I right?"

The Trio smiled at their antics, and thought it was nice to see some normalcy in their normally hectic lives.

The ride back was quiet, as it always is in unknown company. The three siblings were tired and for once they were all in an eerie sort of calm. They were once interested in going to the past but the true weight of the situation kept them on edge. They will sleep well today.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Well. I certainly did not mean to take this long to update. For those of you actually interested and want more, yes, I plan on finishing this story, however long it takes. Once again, I'd appreciate your criticisms. I also appreciate the follows and favorites this story got, it certainly was more than I was expecting. Thank you!**

 _We're here again,_ Al thought wryly.

The Room of Requirement, with Dumbledore's Army. Although, it certainly could have turned out better.

Right now, they were all facing a wall, silently waiting for what's to come. Dobby had just popped in, warning them of Umbridge and her cronies.

Everyone was shell-shocked, how could this have happened?

Al decided he didn't want them to be caught, so he cast quietly, "Accio Dumbledore's Army list!" And then conjured fog easily to blind the intruders for a moment. The room filled with a fog, and the list came to him. A close one as well, because then came a resounding, _"BOMBARDA MAXIMA!"_

"Come on," Al urged, "I know a way out of here! That way!"

They'd followed blindly, which was stupid because he'd no idea where to go.

Al stopped when they were far enough from Umbridge and turned around. "Look, I'm kind of betting on the fact that they didn't see us, so I would just suggest going back to where you usually would be now and act normal." Faces looked up at him in anger and before they could say anything, "This is the best I can do for you, so I'm sorry."

People dispersed and Al started walking to the Gryffindor's common room. _Ah, that was close. What now?_

He'd only gotten there and tried to concentrate on his work but was unfocused. He could not stop thinking about Umbridge. He scowled darkly. She'd probably blame Harry anyways, evidence be damned.

He shouldn't have even thought that because right then, in came Umbridge with her Slytherins sporting a triumphant sort of smile. She looked around for somebody, then, her eyes flashed dangerously at Harry. He looked as if he knew she was here but was making an effort to not know.

Umbridge smiled coldly and said, "Harry Potter, Alex Lionheart, come with me."

Harry looked at Al nervously and proceeded to go with her. Al walked behind, knowing that of course she would blame Harry.

They walked into the headmaster's office, looking the same as before, but with aurors surrounding every corner. Most every single one of them was positioned around Dumbledore.

"I have the perpetrators here with me," Umbridge said with unadulterated glee. "Harry Potter has broken the school decree stating no groups with three or more members may not go on."

"Your proof?" Al challenged.

"Miss Marietta Edgecombe, and a list, all of which had the members," Umbridge said, narrowing her eyes.

Al's eyes widened marginally. _How? I summoned it… I must have dropped it while running._

"The group's name is Dumbledore's Army, which proves Dumbledore is rebelling against the ministry. Arrest him," Umbridge said, now not even covering her ugly toad like smile.

Harry stayed uncharacteristically quiet, his brows furrowed, obviously trying to think a way out for him. Al stayed stock still, not knowing what to do either.

Everything seemed to be going around them, commotion filling up the room and then, "Oh? You all seem to think that I will just come quietly, which is not the case, Professor Umbridge." That was Dumbledore, of course. He's standing up, authority rolling off him in waves, and an almost fierce expression on his face. His phoenix flew on top of him and he grabs the phoenix and disappears in brilliant shades of an angry red, fire illuminating his office. Where he stood before was now covered in black ashes.

The small crowd erupted in anger and loud noise. Al took Harry's hand and found his way out during it.

"What are you doing?" Harry yelled indignantly.

"Getting you out, obviously. I know you want to help him out but he's helped himself. I think he can handle himself, don't you think?" Al was looking at him, talking in a placating manner.

Harry frowned, but let it go. "Whatever," He muttered.

Al rolled his eyes.

 **OoOoO**

Normal. What the hell even is normal here in Hogwarts? Nothing. Nothing at all.

These weeks were hectic. Classes speeded by and then came career consultations. It was during Defense, of course. He did have an idea: to be a spell creator. The meeting itself was horrid. Umbridge seemed to find every way to discredit him, saying he was only getting an E in Ancient Runes, that he never did his work in Defense class, doing his potions horribly, et cetera. These were all untrue of course. Professor McGonagall seemed to find pleasure in teasing him (although with no ill will) implying that he'd be an Auror and save people. Al only smiled knowingly at her, which raised Umbridge's ire even more.

Not long after, Fred and George decided that they'd go out in fashion. It started one day, people doing their usual thing (if it wasn't already banned). Then suddenly, sparks of red rung out, which was only the beginning of the "destruction" about to happen. Fireworks erupted lighting up the roofs of Hogwarts and the outside sky. They took their brooms and flew out grandly and Al knew this was the start of Weasleys' Wizards Wheezes, hearing from his uncle's stories.

Umbridge, soon after, was in sour mood, taking out on the students by giving them detentions. Al tried to keep himself and Harry out of it. Although, the positive mood of the students after the fireworks was everlasting, and Gryffindors the happiest, due to the win of the Quidditch Cup. Saved by Ron, apparently.

The weeks passed by quickly and soon it was nearing examinations, for which the travelers all freaked out over. James stayed up late every night studying, while Al studied just as much, with maybe a few panic attacks in between. (Harry and Hermione once caught him—embarrassing!) Lily was taking it well and paced herself as did Rose. Scorpius didn't even seem to spend his time studying, instead opting to help the others. He could occasionally be heard muttering spells and potions, sometimes all mixed together.

Finally, O.W.L testing had arrived. First was Charms, which was hard, he had made sure to study the most for this subject. Transfiguration was okay, but Ancient Runes was probably his best, along with Arithmancy and Herbology. Potions, he supposed could have gone better, but the minimum he'd get was probably an A. Astronomy went fine as well, and Care of Magical Creatures was difficult, if only for the fact that Hagrid tended to get off track.

Today's was History of Magic. It started off just fine, with people taking the exam quietly. Some were confident, some were absolutely freaking out, and some were indifferent. It goes to say Binns was a horrible teacher.

During it however… Not good. In the middle, Harry had started screaming, which scared Al to no end. He looked up and made contact with Scorpius and Rose, speaking almost telepathically with their eyes.

"Mr. Potter! Are you alright?" Professor Tofty asked an insanely stupid question. _Of course not you daft idiot, he's not screaming because he hates History of Magic! He's in pain!_

"N-no, I-I don't think so," Harry stuttered, still writhing in pain.

Professor Tofty, getting up, said, "You all! Get back to your examinations!"

Al was already finished, and now he was waiting for the hourglass to empty out the top. He was one of the first out with Scorpius and Rose, waiting behind for Harry, who probably was caught up in the flood of students. When he wasn't there, they had ran up corridors and stairs. There was no sign of him, until his loud and ringing voice was heard.

"I'm not lying! Remember last time? The vision I had didn't lie! This has to be real! Sirius is in danger," Harry yelled frantically, itching to see where his godfather is.

"But it could also be a lie! This is You-Know-Who we're talking about, I wouldn't put it past him! I won't go anywhere before we check," Hermione tried to explain. Standing next to her was Ron, Neville, Ginny, and Luna.

Harry looked at her angrily and replied shortly, "Fine. We'll use the floo in Umbridge's office. We'll need distractions and lookouts. Ginny and Luna, tell anyone who come's this way that there is… I don't know, Garroting Gas? Use whatever keeps people out. I'll go into the floo and see if Sirius is there. But if he's not, I'm going to the Department of Mysteries."

Al knew this was incredibly bad timing but he quietly intoned, "Don't you have any other options other than a floo? Like perhaps a communication mirror? That connects to one that he maybe has." It easily cut through the din of the panicking six.

Harry then directed his anger towards Al and voiced, "No, we haven't got ti—"

"Think, Harry, first," Al said quietly.

Harry took this into thought and something did come up. Sirius did give him a mirror, during the start of fifth year, so he wouldn't get lonely. But it was strange how Al seemingly knew this. "Yes, he did seem to give me a communication mirror at the beginning of this year."

"Good. Harry, you try that while your other friends try the floo. Rose and Scorpius can help them. Right?" Al looked at them hopefully.

Rose gave him a pointed look and relented; this was her Uncle Harry after all. Scorpius only agreed for Al's hopeful look.

"Okay, let's go! Thank you, Al," Harry said gratefully.

"No problem," Al replied.

Harry's friends went to Umbridge's office, while Harry ran up to his dorm.

During this Al had time to think. His dad had never talked about his life before his children to them, it was mostly heavily sugared tales that happened during his first few years. Nothing about visions, or a connection to Voldemort.

 _Connection to Voldemort, hmm… Wait! He'd had more of these visions previously, which was apparently true. So Voldemort could be baiting him into something, into giving something he wants. This could just be fake, to lure Harry in. But what? What is in the Department of Mysteries?_ Now that Al thought about it, he remembered listening in on his dad when he said that there were… What? Prophecies?

 _But why would Voldemort want a prophecy? He could only want it if it was about… Harry and himself. Could there be one about him and Voldemort? But why?_ Al thought through all the nicknames for his dad. _Man-Who-Conquered, Boy-Who-Lived, Wizard-Who-Won, the Chosen One… The Chosen One? Why? Maybe Voldemort chose Harry to be… What? His equal? Yeah, that makes sense. So maybe this prophecy said something about him and Dad, which maybe said Dad was meant to kill him. So Voldemort targeted him! That's why Dad has a strange scar and I don't have any paternal grandparents! They died trying to protect Dad! Oh, Dad… Why would Voldemort follow a prophecy? Wasn't he smarter than that? And why does he need to know now? Didn't he hear it already? Maybe he didn't hear the full one and wants to know…_

Al was pulled out of his reverie by thundering footsteps. He looked up to see the panicked face of Harry and instantly knew Sirius hadn't picked up.

"He's not there! We have to go to the Department of Mysteries NOW!" Harry grabbed Al's hand and started running. "I saw Hermione leading Umbridge to the Forbidden Forest and the others trailing far behind them!"

The two had soon caught up to them and saw Umbridge, surrounded by centaurs, who were beyond the point of anger. Umbridge caught Harry's eye and said desperately, "Potter! Save me! Tell them I mean no harm!"

Al glanced at him from the side and saw Harry's eyes sharpen and he said coldly, "'I must not tell any lies, Professor.' Wasn't that what I spent multiple detentions learning? Well, I've learned it. Aren't you proud?"

Umbridge hopeful face turned to one of hopelessness and Al had an uncanny urge to laugh loudly at her. Harry got some sort of sadistic satisfaction from her hopeless look.

Hermione looked at Harry and said grudgingly, "We'll go to the Department of Mysteries, Harry. The question is 'How?'"

"How about brooms?" Luna put her two knuts in dreamily.

Harry looked at her sharply and said impatiently, "Well, Luna, in case you haven't noticed, our brooms were confiscated. We have none and certainly not enough for all of us."

Ginny piped, "I do! I have one!"

"Okay, well, you summon that for yourself to ride but we all need something to ride," Harry said, fidgeting in impatience.

"What?! Ginny this is too dangerous, you're not coming," Ron said dangerously.

"Well, you don't control my life, so I say that I am. That's that, _Ronald_ ," Ginny said almost patronizingly. Al had to stop himself from scowling.

"Stop! We don't have time for this! Any other ideas for transport?" Harry looked to Hermione and Luna.

A thought occurred to Al and at the same time Luna and Al said, "Thestrals."

Luna continued, "They like the smell of meat and we are covered in blood. They're coming here now."

Harry lit up like Fourth of July. Well, not really, but it certainly dispelled the angry look on his face. "Everyone, two on each shouldn't be too much weight for them. Get on."

Al easily got on one and helped Rose climb the thestral. Harry readily helped the others mount. Ginny summoned her broom.

They all took off at fast speeds. Al hugged the thestral's soft mane and Rose hugged Al's back tightly. She was scared of flying, just like her Mum. Al glanced at Hermione and saw that she was hugging Harry's back as well. Al somehow found it in him to smile.

During all of this, Al had one reoccurring thought: _this isn't going to end well for us._


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey, so I'm back with another update. I was inspired and wrote this chapter today. It's a really quick update and I didn't think I'd be able to do it this fast. So, enjoy this chapter, it's super long, almost double the usual length. I wouldn't expect it too often though. Anyways, please review, I'd appreciate your criticisms.**

 _This won't end well for us indeed,_ Al thought tiredly.

It… It wasn't pretty, let's just say that.

First of all, their obstacle after entering came doors. Many of them were dead ends, often being distractive towards a few of those who came, like Luna and Ginny. They'd passed those easily though, once Luna and Ginny were prompted ( _more like forced, really_ ) to get a move on.

Then they'd came to what Al could only discern as the Hall of Prophecies. It was exactly as his dad had described it, shelves and shelves of dusty spheres.

Ron spotted one with Harry's name and Harry had stupidly taken it ( _don't do that, Al screamed in his mind_ ) because as soon as he'd touched it, there was an eerie quiet and then they were surrounded by Death Eaters, all of which adorned nasty and cruel faces. Al was come over with body numbing fear but he'd pushed it down.

Lucius Malfoy practically demanded the prophecy from Harry, but he, being curious, refused. The Death Eaters stayed calm, once again asking for it, and this time in exchange for his and his friends' lives. With another resounding 'no' everybody fired Reductos, destroying more than half the Hall of Prophecies. Everybody immediately ran, of which the Death Eaters followed.

Hermione and Neville were caught up in the fray in which Hermione was stunned by Antonin Dolohov and Neville broke his nose. Ginny broke her ankle and Ron was under some sort of lunacy spell. Rose and Scorpius both took harsh spells because they were watching the people who were fighting, guarding their backs, but somehow are still managing to put their all into the fight. Al himself sported an arm that was numb after excruciating pain, being partially hit with a bone breaking jinx.

It was at this point Harry probably thought it to be a trap, because honestly, who wouldn't? It was obvious they were only after the prophecy.

The group dragged others and limped their way into safety, where half the group was separated.

They were surrounded by five Death Eaters in the brain room. Ron made the mistake of touching the brains and the tentacles strangled him ( _oh so that's where Ron gets the scars on his arm and face, Al thought absentmindedly_ ). Ginny was knocked out after a particularly harsh stunner in the face ( _ouch, Al thought)_ and Luna was thrown into a desk, knocking her out as well (where it came from only Merlin knows). Rose fought along Neville but was eventually brought down with another stunner _._ Al nearly charged at them in fury but kept it in. Al and Scorpius watched Harry's back, protecting him from and deflecting any spells thrown at him from behind.

This had left both Al and Scorpius tired to the bone but they kept fighting and moved around to dodge any spells thrown their way. With all of the movement, they'd ended up fairly close to the Veil of Death, however not close enough to fall.

Finally, a blessing came in the form of five people from the Order. They'd all thrown spells, effectively stopping the Death Eaters' barrage of spells.

Sirius yelled for Harry to take the prophecy and Neville and run. Al watched on tiredly wanting nothing more for it to end, as Harry dropped the prophecy while trying to grab Neville. Professor Dumbledore finally came, with James and Lily in tow, who had immediately went to Rose and Al respectively. Dumbledore corralled the Death Eaters leaving them in unconscious state, however Bellatrix was dueling Sirius. She threw nasty hexes and stunners in a barrage all of which were dodged by Sirius. Except for one red stream of light which had pushed Sirius.

It all happened in slow motion really. Sirius fell slowly and he closed his eyes, accepting his fate. Al, however, could not allow this, so he ripped himself apart from James' embrace and ran as fast as he could. It made his body and bones burn and ache horribly. He skidded to a stop in front of Sirius and tried to grab something, _anything!_ He caught his hands and pulled and pulled, which actually worked against the Veil of Death's grip, which was not strong as he was only small way in. Putting in all his body weight into the pull made him fall back, with Sirius' heavy body, who was knocked out, on top.

Scorpius in fast succession, aimed a bone breaking jinx at Bellatrix and quite a few stunners, all of which hit their mark, due to her shock. But it didn't seem to be enough as she still stubbornly stayed upright, with a thunderous expression on her face.

Harry, seeing all of this, went into a murderous rage chasing after her, for revenge most likely. Dumbledore followed suit.

After that, Al doesn't know what happened, because all he could do was pass out right there and then.

They were all taken to the infirmary and Al passed out for a while. He woke up to James and Lily sleeping on his bed with him. Secretly, he smiled at how much they cared.

 _Now that the battle is out of the way_ , Al thought, _I should probably tell Harry about my revelations_.

"So, you're awake? How are you?"

Al jumped from the unexpected voice looked towards it. It was Harry.

To Al, it looked like Harry has had better days. He was covered in gauze and he was pretty sure that was a black eye.

"I, um, I'm fine," Al replied eventually, looking down at his hands, twiddling his thumbs.

"That's good," Harry said noncommittally, taking his seat next to Al.

"Is there anything you want?" Al said bluntly.

Harry looked at him and said sincerely, "I wanted to thank you, for fighting along with me. I also wanted to thank you for saving my godfather. If he died, I don't know what I would have done."

Al gave a perfunctory nod and looked away, hoping to rest some more.

"I also had a few questions for you," Harry said seriously, looking at Al.

"Ask away," Al replied.

"How did you know about the communication mirror?" Harry asked immediately, waiting for nothing.

"I didn't," Al said honestly. "I took a shot in the dark, it was the first thing that came to me and so I said it."

Harry nodded. "Why did you come with me?"

Al laughed. "Good question. It seemed like the right thing to do. Going to the Department of Mysteries was incredibly stupid, but I also knew you weren't going to stop. You would need all the help you could get, so I came and dragged my friends with me. I don't regret it too much. Although, these injuries are nothing to joke about."

Harry hung his head in shame, though secretly he was smiling.

He whispered, "This is the last one I promise. Why did you save Sirius Black?"

Al tried to feign innocent confusion. "Is that name supposed to ring a bell with me?"

Harry looked at him incredulously. "You know? Sirius Black? The mass murderer of thirteen people?"

Al blinked owlishly. "Oh. You don't really believe that do you? I thought he was wrongly convicted. There was never a trial so people just believed what the media told them. Kind of stupid really, because every verdict of every trial has made to the public except for a select few. I think this one would have definitely made the papers, if only to calm people down. There's really no telling."

Harry once again looked at Al in disbelief. "You, you... Alex Lionheart, you are one strange person. You have surprised on more than one occasion. Yes, well you are right."

Al nodded once again. He was glad he believed his reasoning, because he honestly made something up on the spot. Does every verdict make it to the papers? Who knows! As much as he hated to say it, he was glad Harry was somewhat oblivious to the things going on around him.

"Do you mind walking with me? Snuffles wants to meet you," Harry said, standing up and holding his hand out.

Al cocked his head in confusion but took his hand anyways. He followed him to a room that heavily guarded by compulsion charms ( _he suddenly felt like going the other way_ ).

Al entered the room to find Scorpius and Sirius there. Sirius was sitting up and Scorpius just looked plain lost.

Scorpius looked up and beamed, his smile lighting up his whole face. "Allie! How are you?"

"Well, except for a broken arm, a few bruises, and possibly a black eye... I'm fine, thanks," Al said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"You know that one quote Finn said about the universe and bruises? That would do pretty well right now," Scorpius said in an annoyingly chipper voice.

"I don't understand how you are so happy-go-lucky! You are a fifteen year old boy, aren't you supposed to be brooding and stuff?" Al questioned exasperatedly.

"One: I could say the same for you. Two: we just fought a freaking battle with potentially dangerous—actually, no, scratch that they are dangerous—Death Eaters. We came back with minimal injuries and nobody died; I count that as a win," Scorpius retorted.

"Minimal? I'd hardly count this—" he pointed to his arm, "—as minimal," Al said, raising a brow.

"As minimal as it gets with Death Eaters then," Scorpius said.

Al's only response was a roll of his eyes.

While all of this played out, Sirius and Harry looked back and forth between them, surprised at how easy they spoke with each other.

Al, aware of their lingering gaze, said uncomfortably, "So, um, Sirius, it's nice to meet you. Last time I saw you, you were on top of me."

Sirius laughed, it was deep and throaty, probably from not using his voice often. Even in bedrest, Sirius looked incredibly handsome. "Yes, yes, I was. It's nice to meet you properly now. Just hear me out, I only wanted to thank you for saving me. I couldn't leave Harry and Remus right yet."

Al shifted on his feet and replied, "It was no problem, really. I'm kind of glad I did, now that I know the nature of your relationship with Harry."

"Are you friends with Harry?" Sirius questioned with what seemed like a wary eye.

"I don't know. I consider him a friend but it wouldn't really be much of a friendship if he didn't consider me one too," Al said, quailing a little at his scrutiny.

"Harry, do you mind if I speak with Alex and Scorpius alone?" Sirius asked.

Harry looked at him, unwilling to leave him. But he went anyways.

Sirius started, "So, as Dumbledore would say, the jig is up."

Al looked at him, surprised. "So you know? About us? Did Professor Dumbledore tell you?"

"Yeah, he did. I never would have guessed though! It explains your uncanny resemblance to Harry," Sirius said. Then addressing Scorpius he said, "And you are a Malfoy I presume?"

"Ah, um, yes sir," Scorpius replied quietly.

"If a Potter is friends with you, you must not be so bad so I'm okay with you. Don't get me wrong, I still hate your father and grandfather," Sirius said bluntly.

"No offense taken," Scorpius said, looking down at his lap.

"The both of you, I have a few questions to ask of you. Was it okay that you saved me? It didn't change anything?" Sirius asked seriously.

Scorpius looked at Al, who nodded, and started. "Well, I personally think it's okay. You've always been a part of our lives and our memories of you... How do you say it?"

"Solidified," Al supplied. "The memories we've had of you were kind of blurry in a way. Like they were put in our minds rather than obtained ourselves. They feel more real now. I think if we hadn't saved you, the future would have changed. I don't know how long we have to stay here but I will just have a feeling when we have to leave, you know? It's kind of sketchy but it will have to do."

Sirius nodded and smiled. "Well, now that's out of the way, I'm immensely grateful that Harry survived the war that's started. Tell me, how is Harry as a dad? Or is it too much to tell me?"

Al started, "No, no I think that's fine. Well, Harry is—"

"The most amazing person I know, next to my dad! He's really nice and he didn't judge me by my last name when we first met! I love him!" Scorpius said excitedly.

Al laughed loudly and said, "Scorpius, my Dad, remember?"

Scorpius blushed and looked down shyly. "I, um, well..."

"Also, I'm pretty sure Uncle Draco is right up there with my dad," Al said.

"Draco Malfoy? What has he been up to?" Sirius said angrily.

"No, no! It's okay! He had a major change of heart after the war. You know he is kind of friends with my Dad? For a while he took up the job Arthur Weasley has now, which deals with muggles," Al said with a tone he hoped was placating.

"Oh. Well, that's fine I guess. But it's kind of hard to believe as well because the Malfoys are die hard pureblood elitists," Sirius said.

"Well, you're not wrong. This was nice, thank you for speaking with me but I have to go now and speak with Harry and Professor Dumbledore. Scorpius can keep you company," Al said, gesturing to him.

Al walked out without waiting for a reply, thinking about what he was going to say to Harry. How would he break it to him? The prophecy? Did Harry even know what the Hall of Prophecies was?

 _No_ , Al thought firmly, _a direct approach would be most appreciated by Harry._

Harry was standing outside of the door, deep in thought.

 _Here goes nothing_ , Al thought. "Harry! Can I speak with you?"

Harry snapped his head up towards Al. "Um, yeah, sure, why not?"

"I wanted to talk to you about some things I mulled over when I was resting in bed," Al fibbed, knowing how Harry would freak out if Al told him that he knew before the battle. "It's just that I've been thinking about your...circumstances. I'm going to tell you some things, and I want you to confirm them. Is that okay?"

Harry nodded.

"I figured out that you might have a prophecy pertaining to you," Al spit out quickly. "I was wondering why you were known as the Chosen One and the Boy-Who-Lived. The name 'Chosen One' is implying that you were chosen for something obviously. But for what? Everybody knows the bare minimum of what happened to you; that Voldemort came to your home and attacked. But why? I had a thought that maybe Voldemort believed something—like a prophecy—and came to you because this prophecy stated that you were a threat, a threat to his life. So, in turn, this prophecy is probably saying that you have to be the one to kill him. Am I right?" Al ended quietly.

Harry looked at him blankly as to not reveal any emotion. Inside, however, he is screaming, because a child, only fifteen years old like him, figured out something he couldn't. No, Dumbledore had to tell him. Why didn't he think about why he is called his nicknames? He wanted to yell out, wanted to break something but he couldn't, because he didn't want to scare off someone who willingly came with him to possibly his own death, like his other friends. Someone who saved part of his only family.

"Yes... You're right," Harry replied slowly.

Al nodded, looking down in grim determination. "Alright, then. I'm assuming that you want this kept a secret so I will. And Harry... This is probably a dangerous thing I'm about to do but if you ever need the help, me and my family is there should you need it. Don't be afraid to ask. We're with you and if I told my family and Scorpius, I'm sure they'd agree. I hope you feel better soon."

Harry was stunned. Al is willing to fight alongside him? He has friends who would do that for him, but they have never said it aloud.

Harry walked towards Al and put his arms around him in a tentative hug. He whispered in his ear, "I don't think you know just how much everything you've done for me. So I'll say it again, thank you so much. I owe you so much and I am forever grateful to you."

Al nodded slowly, not expecting the hug. He didn't think his Dad was much of a hugger when he was younger but returned it nonetheless. "Yes, well, I should probably go now, I have to speak with Professor Dumbledore. I'll see you later!"

Al walked towards Dumbledore's office. He had quite a lot to say to him, starting with the secrets he's keeping from Harry. There was also the matter of where they were going to stay. Perhaps they could stay at Hogwarts. And there was the matter of where Harry was going to stay. If Al was right in his reasoning, then it should convince Dumbledore to let Harry stay at the Weasley's.

He reached the two gargoyles and clearly said, "Cadbury Chocolate." The gargoyles rumbled open.

Al walked in, his footsteps echoing.

Dumbledore sat there looking down at his paperwork. His office were filled with knickknacks and other trinkets, effectively looking like something out a fairytale. But it also looked messed up. Many things were lying broken, as if they had been thrown around deliberately. Harry had already been here.

Al cleared his throat and said quietly, "Sir."

Dumbledore looked up, noticing him. "Ah, young Al, what may I do for you?"

"I have a few concerns," Al started. "I would like to know why you've been keeping secrets from Harry. I put two and two together and came to the conclusion of the prophecy about Harry. He just confirmed it for me. From the state of the room you told him today. Why did you wait so long?"

Dumbledore looked fairly surprised, but the twinkle in his eye never left. "I thought he was too young. I felt like I had to wait for him to mature a little more."

"Your idea of maturing is when Harry nearly dies from fighting Death Eaters and Voldemort himself? My Dad told me about the battle. I thought it was a foolish move, waiting so long. In waiting so long, you lost time. If you told him earlier, he could have trained to make himself stronger and defend himself better. He could have been twice as much stronger in fighting this battle. And while I'm talking about this, why did you employ Professor Snape to teach my Dad occlumency? What he did was not train, it was basically mind rape. He expected my Dad to just know what to do. If you had chosen a better teacher, or even chosen yourself for the task, this whole fiasco could have been avoided. Many lives were endangered, all people who I care for very much. Waiting until he matured? Harry is much matured, he has seen things no fifteen year old will ever see in their life! Yes, it was a very foolish move on your part. What do you have to say to that?" Al finished, heaving from his rant.

Dumbledore thought through every detail of Al's argument and saw the wrong in his actions. "I've never thought of it like that. Yes, it seems to have been a very foolish move. But I cannot go back in time and change my decisions. I can only hope to serve Harry better in the future. And I truly do not know what I was thinking employing Severus for the task. Is he always this harsh with other students or is it just Harry?"

"No, it's not just Harry, it's basically every student. I escape his punishments because I'm in Slytherin but he treats the other students unfairly. He unfairly punishes the other houses, sometimes taking fifty or even a hundred points for wrongdoings that only deserve to be punished with taking away ten, fifteen points at most. He assigns detentions if students even breathe in his way. His teaching style leaves a lot to be desired as well. He writes the ingredients on the wall and expects us to know what to do. He doesn't explain the properties of the ingredients and he doesn't explain how ingredients react to each other. I'd be surprised if even an eighth of Hogwarts' students passed the Potions exam."

Dumbledore's expression radiated disappointment. "I… I will look into this and see what I can do."

Al nodded. "Another thing, this time about Harry's living arrangements. I understand that he lives there because there are blood wards protecting him from Voldemort?"

Dumbledore nodded.

"I'll cut to the chase. Those blood wards are basically useless now. He stayed there for protection and to reinforce them. But the events of the end of his fourth canceled the blood wards. Voldemort did a _blood_ ritual to revive himself. He needed Harry's blood to do it. Since he now has Harry's blood flowing through his veins, he can enter the house of number four Privet Drive without so much as feeling a prickle of pain. There's no use making him go back there. Let him stay somewhere else, somewhere he'll be appreciated. If you must protect the Dursley's, then make him stay there a week at most. No more. But even then that'd be useless because once again, Voldemort can easily pass through them," Al explained, radiating determination.

Dumbledore's eyes widened in shock. "The blood wards are useless…" He mumbled to himself. It is true, the blood wards need Harry's blood to stay alive but they are useless now that Voldemort has Harry's blood in him. Harry doesn't need to go there anymore. "Yes, your reasoning is not wrong. In fact, he should have been staying with somebody else last summer as well. I will let him stay with the Weasley's the whole summer and any summers following. You must be angry at the horrible way I've been treating your father."

"Yes, I've always had a bit of trouble accepting why my Dad named me after you. I now know that you're trying your best, but sometimes your decisions hurt others. I just decided that I would help my dad regarding his pain and help steer you in the right direction," Al said, satisfied at the outcome of things. "Now, finally about my family and I. We need somewhere to stay. Would staying at Hogwarts be fine with you?"

Dumbledore thought it through and decided he had a better idea. "Maybe not at Hogwarts but maybe at the Weasley's."

Al's eyes widened. "That would be asking too much. They are already struggling with feeding their own family, how will they accommodate five more people?"

Dumbledore had a feeling he would ask that so he replied, "No worries, I will provide them with what they need to take care of you. I can spare a few galleons to take care of people Harry finds important to him. Do you mind telling Harry for me about his staying at the Weasley's? To make it more believable I will write him a note to confirm it."

"Of course. But do you mind telling the Weasley's they're going to have a few more guests over this summer? I don't really want to know their reactions," Al said, bouncing on the heels of his feet in excitement.

"Not a problem," Dumbledore said, finishing up his note. "Anything else you want to address?"

"Nope," Al replied happily.

Al literally ran back to the infirmary, happier than he's been after coming to the past. He gathered Scorpius and tried to find Harry but he wasn't there. He figured he'd be with his friends, looking after them.

He reached the room Harry, his friends, and family were. Scorpius walked off to talk with Rose and the others.

He caught sight of Harry sitting next to Hermione and Ron and yelled out, "Harry! I have some good news for you!"

Harry looked at Al tiredly. "Yes?"

"While I was speaking to Professor Dumbledore, he wanted me to tell you something. He told me that you were going to stay with the Weasley's for the summer if they allow it. If you need proof, here you go, he wrote you a note." Al pulled out the note and handed it to him.

Harry read it and saw the signature at the bottom. His face broke out into a huge grin. He looked the happiest he's been this whole year.

"Bloody hell, mate! You can stay with us! This will be a fun and a happier summer," Ron said excitedly.

"This is great Harry! You don't have to stay with those horrid Dursley's again," Hermione exclaimed. "I'll try to come over towards the end of summer so we can all be together!"

Harry turned to Al, still smiling. "Did you by chance have a part in this?"

Al replied as honestly as he could, "No. How could I? I don't know anything about your housing arrangements so I truly don't know if this is good news or not. I thought it was. Anyways, I have to speak with my family, so I'll see you later!"

Al approached James, Lily, Rose, and Scorpius. Al said quietly so the others in the infirmary didn't hear, "So, guys, I have some good news for you too. We're going to stay at the Weasley's for the summer. I asked if we could stay at Hogwarts but Professor Dumbledore said no."

The whole group lit up in excitement, happy to be staying with their family, and Scorpius just happy to have somewhere to stay.

James said, "That's awesome, Al! I didn't even think of that."

Rose said, "It really is wonderful news. It might be hard to stay with people who don't know us now though."

James pondered it. "It might be. But we also know that they are a charitable family. But five people? In total there will be living sixteen people if Uncle Sirius is staying there and that's a lot of people to take care of."

Al replied offhandedly, "Professor Dumbledore will take care of it."

"Alright. Anyways, on to the matter at hand… Al! Rose! Scorpius! How could all three of you just run off like that?! You could have at least told Lily and me," James chastised, staring angrily at them.

Scorpius muttered, "I knew this was coming…"

Rose replied for Al saying, "It was for Harry, Jamie! Surely you can understand that?"

James replied shortly, "Of course I can. My—no ours, it is Lily's as well—problem is that you didn't take us! So many people were hurt! Madame Pomfrey couldn't handle all the patients so I had to help! Not that it was a problem of course, but it still was terrifying not knowing where you were! For all I know you all could've been dead! Times are dangerous, we all need to protect each other. You fought with Death Eaters. Surely you can understand?"

Al sighed in defeat. "Of course, Jamie. We're sorry. It was kind of an impulsive decision but we had to. I don't regret it."

Lily finally chipped in her opinion. "I wouldn't have regretted it either. It's just… We feel useless now. We could've helped Harry, God knows he can't fight all his battles by himself. I guess we'll just have to be there to go next time, which I hope won't be for a very long time."

James finished, "What Lily means it that we'll be there for Harry when he needs it."

Al looked at him sheepishly and said, "Good, because I already promised Harry we would."

James laughed mirthfully. "Just like you to promise something before asking them. Not that we mind anyways."

Al smiled happily. It had been a good day, even if they fought a battle.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Back with another chapter! I'm killing this thing! Anyways, although it may seem like it, this is not a Weasley and Hermione bashing story. I just feel that Ron and Ginny weren't developed that well in the actual books. Ron is an easy character to manipulate into the dark side, as his actions in the book didn't do much to dispute the opposite. I hated that Ron's actions dictated his character and not his thoughts. Why did he act the way he did? Why does he do what he do? I'm going to attempt to make him a 'deeper' character. Ginny, on the other hand, I feel wasn't explained too much. Shouldn't the lover of the hero have some depth in her character? She was practically nonexistent in the books after Chamber of Secrets but then she randomly appeared in Half Blood Prince. She seems too perfect to me. And any flaws she showed in the books were manipulated into making her look awesome and a fun girl to be with. She was actually commended for hexing a student and practically got away with insulting Fleur, Hermione, and Luna (you know, that one time she called her Loony). She went from a shy girl into a flame haired beauty. We never got to see her develop into who she is in Half Blood Prince. Any of her 'accomplishments' are told to Harry, not actually shown in the books. I don't know if I'd do it justice but I'm going to try to make her seem more 'real' and not just a flat character. Isn't what makes a good character? A person with both good and bad traits? As for Hermione, if people don't look closer at her, she will come off as a bossy know-it-all. The time travelers know an older, more mature Hermione, not the Hermione they are interacting with in the story. She will be the sweet girl we all love and know in the series. And now Al. In this particular chapter he may seem a little bit too perfect, but I swear, these spells will be tremendously helpful in the oncoming war, which is why I had to introduce you to them. Also, Harry is an oblivious dumbass so Al has to help him out during a few hard pressed situations.**

Dumbledore sighed heavily. He'd employed Severus as a Potions teacher to look after Harry. He'd looked over any unfair treatment because he thought Severus was doing his job right. Apparently not. What to do about it?

"Headmaster, you called," Snape drawled, bored to be here.

"Yes, I did indeed Severus. I would like to address a few things with you. From the complaints of a few students, I have learned of your... Less than satisfactory behavior with the students," Dumbledore said as calmly as he could. "It is apparent that you have been upholding your Slytherins to a pedestal, sometimes even commending them for their wrongdoings. I have heard that they destroy other students' potions and that they are awarded for them! It has also come to my attention that your teaching style does nothing for the students! You explain nothing to the students, expecting that they just know what to do! Explain yourself."

Snape was shocked. Who told Dumbledore of his behavior? Through gritted teeth, he said, "May I ask who brought this up with you?"

"The person did not say anything about staying anonymous but I am assuming that he wanted his identity kept secret," Dumbledore replied, using his grandfatherly tone.

"I see," Snape bit out. "Headmaster, you surely cannot expect me to teach seven years of students can you? Most of them are dunderheads who can it even make the simplest of potions!"

Dumbledore thought through Severus' explanation. "I would have worded it a little bit better but I see where you are coming from. Let's come to a compromise. I would have said that you only teach fifth, sixth, and seventh year students only and hire another potions teacher for the younger years, but I could not find a good teacher for Defense Against the Dark Arts. It seems you will be getting the position you have been denied so long, Severus."

Snape inwardly smiled. "It would be my pleasure to take the spot, Headmaster."

"Of course. In exchange for this position, I implore you to be fair to the other students and teach the subject well, Severus. Explain everything to the students and if they ask questions, do not dismiss them, answer them. Please do not take more than ten points from any one student. If you do, I will look at why you took more than ten and approve of it. If I don't approve of it, then I will take away the number of points that I feel the wrongdoing deserves. The same is for detentions. Is this fair?" Dumbledore finished.

Snape sneered. He didn't want to do any of what he asked, except for what he asked of teaching the subject. But he had an obligation to the headmaster, who gave him a job and somewhere to stay, away from the Dark Lord. He couldn't pass up the chance to teach a subject he has waited for nearly ever since he came to the Headmaster, asking for forgiveness and help. "Of course, Headmaster."

"I am glad we have taken care of this, Severus," Dumbledore said. "Now, I have a few other things to take care of."

Snape, seeing his cue, left the Headmaster's office, his cloak billowing behind him.

Dumbledore was not confident in Severus keeping his promise, but he would have to trust him. If not he would have to remind Severus of what he did for him.

Now on the next in agenda... Dumbledore grabbed a pinch of floo powder, throwing it into the fire. It immediately turned green. He walked in and yelled, "The Burrow!"

He arrived to a fairly quiet house, with only pots and pans banging to fill the silence. The Weasley matron was busy washing dishes. She looked up and exclaimed, "Oh! Headmaster, is anything the matter?"

"Oh, yes, Molly. I'm sorry to intrude on you so suddenly, but I do have to speak with you. You see, I have a few students who are in need of a place to stay. Do you mind housing them?" Dumbledore asked pleasantly.

"I would do it but I don't think I have enough to..." Molly trailed off.

"Not a worry, Molly. I will be providing you with whatever you need. I did say they need only a place to stay," Dumbledore said, amused.

"Oh!" Molly said, surprised. "Then, yes, I will do it for you. How many?"

"Five, plus one. You will be happy to know Harry will be staying the summer. Do not worry, they are kind people, and if you ask, I'm sure that they would help you around the house. Some circumstances came up which require your help," Dumbledore explained.

Molly brightened. "Oh, Harry! He's staying here? That's wonderful, he doesn't have to go back to those horrible people he calls his aunt and uncle! He's so thin... Before I forget, what do these people look like?"

"Two of them have black hair, two of them with red, and one of them is blonde. Their names are Jamie, Alex, and Lily Lionheart, Rose Young and Scorpius Green. I am glad that that is settled. It was nice seeing you Molly," Dumbledore said, flooing into his office.

"You too," Molly yelled out, going back to washing her dishes.

 **OoOoO**

The train set off, the students all milling around inside it. The group of time travelers were all in one compartment, sitting in a quiet and comfortable peace.

The door opened, and the group's attention turned to it. Harry was standing there, intending to sit in the compartment, but opted to leave the group alone.

James spoke up, "You can sit with us you know. We've never properly met you or your friends have we? Bring them over if you'd like, we don't mind at all, right everybody?"

The group nodded simultaneously.

Harry's hand immediately went to the back of his head, rubbing it sheepishly. "If you don't mind then… I'll see if they'd like to come."

He came back with Ron and Hermione in tow, who set their belongings down and sat down tentatively, wary at the prospect of meeting new people.

Al smiled at them respectfully. He held his hand out to Hermione and Ron. "Hello, I'm Alex Lionheart, but you probably already know who I am. You know, prefect duties and all."

Hermione shook his hand and said primly, "Hermione Granger. Nice to meet you too."

Al moved his hand over to Ron, who shook it reluctantly and mumbled, "Ron Weasley."

The group introduced themselves shortly after.

Harry started to break the awkward silence, but Lily did with, "You know, I never noticed it before but Rose looks really similar to Hermione and Al is a carbon copy of Harry."

James took a closer look at them. "Huh. They really do. Al doesn't have to worry about having good looks now because Harry's already got them."

Al laughed at James' joke and Harry blushed haevily and smiled nervously. The occupants of the cabin stared at him.

James said unashamedly, "What? All of you have thought it before, I'm just stating it out loud."

Scorpius said, "Well, you're not wrong…"

The group nodded.

"Anyways! Who wants to play Exploding Snap? Great way to start the day you know? Blowing up stuff in your face. Always fun," Lily said cheerily.

"You're on Moon Flower! We all know that you're the one that's going to end up with the burnt face," Rose said happily.

After a few rounds, Lily practically rage quit, throwing the cards down onto the floor. "Well, we all also know that I'm a sore loser so… Let's play chopsticks now!"

The group groaned, all leaning back into their seats.

Harry, amused at their general liveliness, offered to play with Lily. "How do you play?"

"Oh, it's easy. You only play with your hands," Lily said.

The time passed with Lily and Harry playing hand games, the group of travelers watching back and forth between them.

Ron and Hermione sat back, happy to just watch amidst the strangers (well, acquaintances now).

Hermione was perplexed at how they knew these muggle games. She asked Al.

"Oh, well, Lillia and Jamie are my siblings, you know that. Rose is my cousin and Scorpius is my best friend and a friend of the family's. My dad was a half-blood raised by his muggle aunt and uncle, so they had to play lots of hand games to entertain themselves. My dad taught us when we didn't have anything to do," Al explained.

Hermione looked at him skeptically, thinking that his 'explanation' sounded awfully like what Harry lived through. She nodded slowly.

Al stared at her, knowing her mind was whirring, trying to figure out why his story sounds so much like Harry's. To break her out of it, he queried, "Is anything the matter?"

Hermione snapped out of her line of thought and answered shortly, "No, not at all."

Rose sat up sharply. "Guys, I just remembered… When Professor Dumbledore said where we were staying at the Weasley's…"

Al played along with her knowing it was an act. He feigned realization. "Right… Um… Ron! We forgot to tell you, a few days ago Dumbledore informed us that we'd be staying at the Weasley's for them summer… Just thought we'd let you know."

Ron looked at him blankly before it registered. "WHAT?!"

Rose winced. "We're sorry we forgot to tell you, it truly did slip our minds." No, it didn't.

Ron stood up and said angrily, "And you guys don't have anywhere else to go?"

James looked at him in mock sympathy. "No. We asked to stay at Hogwarts, but Professor Dumbledore wouldn't have any of it. He told us we'd be staying with you. We didn't really question his decision because you know, him being the most powerful wizard of all…"

Ron sat down angrily and mumbled incoherent words, the most common ones being 'nasty,' 'Slytherins,' 'know-it-all,' and 'Ravenclaw.'

Hermione and Rose were about to berate Ron but Scorpius beat them to it. "You know it's not a good habit to judge people before you get to know them. It could lose you a lot of people. And besides, you have to live with it now. It's out of your hands to change it. Dumbledore's decisions always seem to be final you know."

Ron, in his ire, snapped, "Not like a slimy Slytherin could know anything."

Al narrowed his eyes. He never thought that his Uncle Ron could be so biased. Then again, he is younger. To set him straight he said in a final tone, "Just because he's Slytherin doesn't mean you should automatically dismiss his argument. What does being in Slytherin have to do with this anyways? I thought we went over this on that one trip to Hogsmeade. You know that Scorpius is right."

Ron huffed and sat back down, refusing to look anybody in the eye.

Harry looked up from the game of Concentration the two were playing, hearing all of what the group said. He chose to not intervene as the two Slytherins already seem to have it in their hands. "I for one think it will be fun to have you with me at the Burrow. I can get to know you better now. Also, the more the merrier, no?"

Al smiled at him gratefully. Ron sent him a betrayed look but one glare from Hermione shut him up.

The whole group internally sighed in relief, except for Lily, who was in her own little world.

 **OoOoO**

The group got off quietly, Harry and the others right behind them.

Hermione came along with them, her parents making a last second decision to let Hermione stay with the Weasley's.

Molly saw Harry (or rather Al, who looks exactly like him) and ambled over to him saying, "Harry! How are you? Have you been eating well?" Here, she hugged Al, "It's so nice to see you again!"

Al smiled nervously and said almost quietly, "Um, Missus?" When she didn't hear him he said louder, "Miss!"

Molly looked at Al strangely. To keep up the act he blushed lightly. "I'm sorry, you seem to have mistaken me for someone else. I'm Alex, Harry is right behind James. He's the other one with messy black hair."

Harry waved at Molly behind James and greeted, "Hello, Mrs. Weasley."

"Oh! I'm sorry dear, it's just that..." Molly started but Al just waved it off saying, "It's alright."

"You five must be people Dumbledore asked me to house," Molly said.

Al smiled and nodded politely, as did the others.

Molly smiled. "Alright. We'll leave once Fred, George, and Ginny get here. Now, where are they...?" Molly said, looking for them.

"Mum!" Ginny called out, looking from behind Fred and George. She saw the time travelers and said, gesturing to them, "Who are they?"

"Oh, dear, they're going to stay with us over the summer. Didn't anyone tell you?" Molly answered, starting to walk towards the Burrow.

"No," Ginny said looking at the group strangely, as if she didn't want them to be there. She actually had heard, but she only knew Harry was staying, not them too. She thought she'd get to know Harry better over the summer, but apparently not, not with them around keeping Harry occupied. Well, then, she'd just have to be with Harry first, no?

"Well, somebody forgot to tell us," Ron grumbled, clearly not happy of them staying.

Al rolled his eyes in response.

Fred and George were happy at the prospect of having more people who could possibly test new products. Well, if they don't hex them first.

 **OoOoO**

The Burrow looks the same, if not a little 'older' and less sturdy. When the Weasley family found out that they were going to have kids running amuck the house, they decided to spruce it up a bit. They added charms to keep it sturdy and expansion charms to be able to hold all the people bound to stay there.

Al thinks it still looks like home, the place where he found most comfort. It helped that Nana was always almost around the house doing one thing or another bustling around the cozy house.

"Well, welcome, to our humble abode," Molly introduced.

Al smiled as nicely as he could, not wanting to offend his Nana. He knows that she's thinking that the group is secretly judging it with thoughts of 'This is a house?' and 'Now, I see why they call it a Burrow.'

Al said nothing in fear of offending Molly but Lily said sweetly, "I love it. It feels like home." The others immediately agreed, as did Al.

"Why thank you," Molly said, smiling bigger, threatening to split her face.

"It's no problem, Missus," Scorpius said. "If I may ask, are we all in the same room?"

"Oh, did you want to be?" Molly asked.

"Yes, please," Scorpius replied happily.

"Well, then, that shall arranged," Molly said, smiling. She walked in, quickly arranging their rooms, and allowing them to unpack their things.

"I'll call you when dinner is ready. Until then, do whatever you want, as long as it doesn't break the house," Molly said jokingly.

Al sighed. "Well, at least we got that over with. She was nicer than I thought she'd be with strangers, wasn't she?"

Lily said, "She's still the Nana we know and love, so yeah. I kind of get where you are coming from, she told me that she didn't really like Fleur much when she was around for this summer to plan the wedding. I didn't know how she'd react to us so I went for the first thing I thought of to make her happy: complimenting her house. She loves it when people do that."

James smiled. "Genius, Lilypad."

The group silently unpacked, happy to relish in the quiet. At least nothing too bad happened.

 **OoOoO  
**

Time passed quickly and soon Ginny had called them down for dinner. The group was considerably happier, it had been so long since they'd eaten Nana's cooking.

Everybody sat down politely. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny sat together. The group sat together on the other side. It was kind of awkward, due to the fact that the Weasleys did not yet know them. The Weasley family talked among themselves, with Bill actually among them (he's usually away for work as a curse breaker), along with Fleur.

Molly often sent dirty looks to the pretty Veela as did Ginny, and Ron just smiled dumbly at her. Harry's reaction to the part fourth Veela was much subdued, as he wasn't that attracted to her. Ginny made feeble attempts to talk to Harry, of which Harry took in stride, answering pleasantly, trying to ease Ginny's nerves.

The group sat in silence, happy to stay quiet and let the Weasley's do all the talking. Well, that is until Bill asked politely, out of obligation most likely, what there are studying to be. The others paid attention respectfully. They were interested, even if they did not seem it.

Lily jumped up in her chair, ever the cheery person she is and replied, "I want to be an author! I see a lot of children's books and books for adults in the Wizarding World but never any for those in between."

Bill looked mildly interested. "Oh? What do you intend to write about?"

"Anything, really. From meaningful stories to the occasional mild romance novels. I'm not good at writing them nor do I like them much, but I like to take up a challenge. It's good to try, no?" Lily told Bill cheerily.

"That's a good way to think, Lily. I wish you the best in your future endeavors," Bill said. He looked to the others.

"I want to be a magizoologist," James said a little quietly, the tiniest bit embarrassed. He had never shared what he wanted to be with anyone except his siblings and Aunt Hermione. "I think they're interesting. I want to find more new animals. I recently discovered wrackspurts."

Hermione scoffed. She was good friends with Luna but sometimes it was hard understand her, with her eccentricities and all. "Those creatures Luna went on about? I doubt it."

Harry quietly input, "Well, they could be real you know."

James was in between doing a frown and a smile. His Aunt Hermione was always supportive of what James wanted to do so it was a little off putting how she so easily went to discredit him. "I assure you that they are real. You didn't believe thestrals existed but they do." Here, James got up and walked over to Hermione. "If I may…" He muttered. He blew into her ear, and she squealed in ticklishness. He immediately cast a silent 'Engorgio.'

In his hands stood a round ball of fluff, about a centimeter tall and was looking confused. "This, Hermione, is a wrackspurt. They're not invisible, just incredibly minuscule. This is the best way to study them, but if you only want to see them, you can get Spectrespecs. They're the strange glasses Luna always wears," James explained. He handed the wrackspurt to her, which Hermione took, immediately fascinated by the tiny creature.

James sat down, satisfied. "My case is closed."

"Well, that is interesting," Bill said. "It looks like you're making your way pretty well."

James smiled. "Thank you."

Rose immediately answered to Bill's question with, "A journalist," not explaining. It seemed that she didn't know if that was what she wanted to do for real.

Scorpius did the same as Rose, except with, "Metal charmer."

Bill finally looked to Al.

Al answered, "A spell creator."

Nearly everybody's eyebrows raised to their hairlines. Well, except for the time travelers. It was a well-known fact that being a spell creator was one of the hardest (and well paying too) jobs out there, just for the mere facts that making spells was a hard job and demanded the best N.E.W.T scores in the hardest subjects that Hogwarts offers.

Ginny said skeptically, "Kind of ambitious and hard, isn't it?"

Al smiled. "That's why I'm in Slytherin. It _is_ known for its ambitiousness."

Ginny looked down a little in shame. She'd remembered the Slytherin's manipulative and cunning nature but not that they aimed high and were resourceful.

Harry questioned, if a little stupid, whether he had created any spells yet.

Al blushed a bit. "As a matter of fact, I have, with a lot of help from these four," He said, gesturing to his family and friend. "Two, actually. One is called the 'Permanent Sleep' spell. It renders your opponent to a deep slumber for however long you want them to."

Hermione, Al having peaked her interest, said matter-of-factly, "You do realize that people can easily cast a 'Rennervate' and wake them up, right?"

"Yes, I do. But there is a reason it's called the 'Permanent Sleep' spell. A reviving spell won't work at all. The intended opponent will be asleep no matter what people try on them, until the allotted time is over. Dangerous, but scary useful when you need it," Al said, a knowing glint in his eye.

Harry thought it was quite useful as well. He could use it against a Death Eater without doing any actual harm to them.

"You've got to teach us it some time," Harry said hopefully.

"Of course," Al said. He continued, "Then, I'm working on another, called 'Procure Fog." Not my best name but, eh. It conjures fog. The good thing about it is that the caster can see right through it, as well as who you want to see through it. The caster is the only one who can get rid of it. You can also have a proxy, if something happens to the caster."

Hermione looked as if they'd found Merlin himself. She questioned, "How ever did you do it? Creating these spells, I mean. Do you think you can teach me how?"

"I'd love to but I told you, these spells were the creation of all five of us. I don't think I alone could teach you," Al said sadly. "Our information is kind of disjointed and everywhere. It'd be hard to put it into something we could teach you. But Ancient Runes and Arithmancy is a big part in spell creating, if that helps any. Do you take them?"

Hermione nodded.

"At the very least, we could teach you the bare minimum," Al said trying to cheer her. "Other than that, the most we could do is teach you these spells."

"Alright, I can make do with that," Hermione said.

The others were watching in between the two of them, a little awed at Al's raw intelligence and Hermione's love to learn.

The rest of dinner was quieter now, but at least the awkwardness thawed.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Hello, I'm back with another chapter. This one's kind of a weird chapter and I think the timeline's a little screwed up. But it was by far my favorite, probably because I gave a chance at changing point of views. There is something tiny you guys might not like that I feel pretty strongly about. Also, there is a reference to one of my all-time favorite animes (it's Mawaru Penguindrum). Also, it's almost time to bring in the last two of the travelers. Who do you guys think they should be? Give me a few ideas. Review, I'd appreciate your criticisms.**

The summer was much more interesting than any of the other summers they had spent at the Burrow.

The group often spent their time helping around the Burrow, cleaning up and making dinner for the number of people that live there (Sirius too, strangely). James, Lily, Rose, and Scorpius were the best help they could have asked for this task. As much as Al wanted to help, he was only a good baker, not a good cook. They also spent their time at the lake behind the Burrow, throwing water at each other and talking to each other genially. Sometimes Harry, Hermione, and Ron tagged along, but they mostly kept to themselves.

Molly tried to get on them (save for Lily) for using magic. She couldn't argue that James was also seventeen and the fact that using wandless and wordless is practically untraceable. When she asked how they knew to do it, they told her that they're parents were paranoid and they decided to teach them how to defend themselves. Molly looked at them exasperatedly and went back to whatever she was doing.

They would make it a productive summer no matter what though. Al knew Sirius was an on the run fugitive so he took the matter into his own hands (although the idea was suggested by James and Scorpius).

He wrote a letter to Amelia Bones; someone who Al knew to still be alive. She died during later this summer. Perhaps he could save her...

Anyways, the contents of this letter included:

 _Dear Miss Amelia Bones,_

 _It has come to my attention that Sirius Black, an escaped fugitive, has been wrongly imprisoned. He has spent twelve years in Azkaban for something he did not do._

 _This is my belief only, however. I am confident that if you held a proper trial (which he was never given. Every captured criminal has a right to, no? I understand it was a time of war, but a strong government is key to keep people calm and collected) for him, he would be found innocent. Would you help me out?_

 _Thank you for your time,_

 _Alex Lionheart_

 _P.S. May I suggest you put the strongest wards around your house? As I am sure you know, Voldemort is back, and it would not hurt to practice strong precaution. Might I also suggest you to choose wards that are undetectable? If they are undetectable, how can any Death Eater or Voldemort fight it?_

Al had sent the letter off to Amelia Bones, knowing that she was a competent Ministry employee.

He'd soon gotten a letter back (handed to Al by a suspicious Ginny Weasley) from her. It stated that what Al said is true and that she'd take care of it immediately. She had also agreed with Al's side note and heeded his advice.

Al could not be happier at the turn of events. He immediately informed the other travelers, all of which were ecstatic. Now to Sirius...

He approached Sirius later that day.

"Hey kiddo, is something up?" Sirius smiled happily playing a game with Harry (well, at least now he didn't have to tell them separately).

"Uh, yeah! So me, Jamie, and Scorpius were talking, right?" Al started tentatively. He had no idea why he was so nervous, but he was. "James was saying how you were an escaped fugitive and Scorpius was wondering how we could... Free you. Since they were busy helping around the house with Mrs. Weasley, I took it into my own hands and wrote a letter Amelia Bones. She said she'd give you a trial!"

Sirius and Harry looked at him blankly. Al squirmed. "Um, well, I thought I would let you know. Bye!"

Al made to let himself out of the door.

"Wait! Saving my godfather and working to free him? You really have done a lot for me Al. Thanks again! I really don't know how to make it up to you, James, and Scorpius," Harry said, smiling gratefully.

"You don't," Al said. "We only did it because we like Sirius."

Sirius laughed. "Well, I don't know what you would have done if you guys didn't like me. Thanks, Allie."

"Don't call me Allie," Al said halfheartedly, smiling at Sirius. "It's reserved for my siblings, Scorpius, and Rosie."

Sirius rolled his eyes, going back to the game. "So, when is the trial?"

"Miss Bones works pretty quickly, I was surprised to know, considering she works for the Ministry. In three days she wrote," Al answered.

Sirius frowned. "Three days? So soon? I thought I would have more time."

"Time for what? To prepare what you say? They're going to use veritaserum, which is why you have a hundred percent chance of being free. It might also come out that you're an animagus, but I think they'll let it go because you've spent twelve years in Azkaban," Al said thoughtfully.

Harry looked at him disbelievingly. "How do you know he's an animagus?"

"I saw a black dog following us home. I figured it might be Sirius," Al said nonchalantly, but on the inside he was anything but. How could he have slipped up like that? He'd have to be more careful around Harry.

Sirius wasn't at all surprised he knew though, because what grand godson of his doesn't?

 **OoOoO**

Three days later, the trial occurred. Al made sure to go super early; he did not want another repeat of what happened to Harry.

Fudge is still in for Minister of Magic, and he does like power very much, you know. Though, from Al's memory of what his Dad told him of Rufus Scrimgeour, he wasn't a good Minister either.

Sirius was made to look as if he was still an escaped fugitive; he smelled horrible, eyes were made to look as if they've fallen in, and his clothes were ratty and old. Al didn't want the Weasley family to Azkaban because they kept Sirius' whereabouts secret.

When the trial started, Sirius was asked fairly simple questions, and then asked for details. As Al predicted, he was charged not guilty and the fact that he was an animagus was found out. But he didn't have to pay one knut as five of the twelve years in Azkaban was used as actual punishment for being an illegal animagus and for escaping Azkaban. He was given twelve thousand galleons for each year wrongly spent.

"This is amazing Sirius," Remus exclaimed. "You got off without any damage done to you! Who asked for the trial?"

Sirius smiled giddily, and threw an arm around him. "It was Al. You should meet him, he's… You're trustworthy, Remus, I can tell you. So, there was a group of five people that 'randomly' showed up at Hogwarts. It turns out that they're actually from the future. Three of them are Harry's sprogs, one of them is Ron and Hermione's, and the other is Malfoy's."

Remus looked at him incredulously. "I somehow think it's made up. It's kind of crazy isn't it?"

"No, it isn't," Sirius immediately defended. "The first person they talked to was Dumbledore. They came with a note from a future Dumbledore. Although Dumbledore is manipulative, he means well and he is somewhat trustworthy. Also, time turners exist. If you use the right enhancers, you can easily go back years. Or you could do the number of turns for every hour, but enhancers are easier. It replaces every turn with a year, making it easier to back very far."

Remus brows furrowed. "You're not wrong, Sirius… But do you mind if I ask them?"

Sirius nodded. "I'm sure they know you too, so yeah, I guess."

Remus nodded, satisfied. "With them here, it proves that Harry did live, as did many others. That's a relief. He doesn't deserve to die at the hands of You-Know-Who."

Sirius agreed, saying, "No, he really doesn't."

 **OoOoO**

Al was scared when Remus confronted them accusing them of being from the future, he'll admit. He'd asked many questions rapid fire. The ones that were okay to answer were answered fully by James but those that weren't were given vague answers by Lily.

Thankfully, no one else found out, it was just him, Sirius, and Luna.

The rest of the summer was uneventful…kind of. James had gotten a summer job at a bookstore named _The Book Stop's Here_. Al, Rose, and Scorpius followed in his path, saying that they won't be able to shop around muggle London if they don't have money. They _could_ window shop but that's no fun.

They worked for most of the day, helping around customers, and reading the books. Everybody was able to get a job at the small, corner shop because it was mostly desolated, and the owner was in desperate need of customers. Needless to say, Rose worked her 'interior design' magic and made the shop prettier and placed interesting books at the window. Soon enough, customers were coming in quickly.

Al never had a job before, but he thought he was doing pretty well for a first time. He was currently on his lunch break.

"Oh, hey, look at this," James said in slight surprise. He showed Al a book titled _The Apple of Fate_. It was decorated with three blue penguins and a girl with light brown hair, wearing a light blue and white dress, and holding an apple.

Al looked at James, his eyes questioning.

James rolled his eyes. "It's Aunt Luna's favorite book, remember? Maybe she liked it because we gave it to her."

Al jumped. "I didn't know it was published in the nineteen nineties. It's a good book, you should buy it for her. We already know she'll like it."

James nodded. "Exactly what I was going to do anyways. We should visit Luna sometime to give it to her. I haven't seen her yet."

But they didn't have to because she showed up on her own at the Burrow, late one afternoon.

"Hello, Luna," Al said. "What are you doing here?"

"I have pie," Luna said dreamily. She added after a thought, "Made with dirigible plums."

"Oh," Al said, "one of my favorite fruits."

Luna's eyes twinkled happily.

"Do you mean to take that to Ginny? Or Harry?" Al asked.

Luna's eyes sparkled. "He's here too? Oh, he's finally escaped his awful relatives! I'm glad!"

Al smiled. "Come on, I'll take you to him."

Luna skipped her way, all up until the upstairs room.

"Harry, Ginny," Al called out to them. "Someone's here for you."

Harry smiled and greeted, "Hello, Luna."

Ginny lit up. "Luna! What are you doing here?"

Luna smiled, still chipper. "I have something! Dirigible plum pie!"

Ginny's smile faltered, but it was back quickly. "I don't know, Luna... Last time I tried something of yours, it didn't exactly turn out well..."

"Oh, that's probably because Daddy isn't too good of a cook," Luna explained. "I like to think I'm somewhat better than him." Luna flashed a smile.

"Okay... I'll try it," Ginny said.

Al watched between the two of them, knowing the two were still good friends.

"Oh, by the way, Luna," Al called. "If you don't have to go anywhere after this, call for Jamie, he has something you might like."

Luna nodded.

 **OoOoO**

James sat down tiredly. In addition to going to work, he had to help around some more around the house. Rose and Scorpius were already knocked out on the floor.

He was about to go to sleep but then:

"Hullo. Might you be James?"

James groaned. "Yes, that is me." He opened his eyes to see Luna, peering at him.

"Alex said you might have something for me," Luna said dreamily.

James blinked. "Oh. Right, I do. Let me get that for you."

He walked up into the room Luna was in with Harry, and the others and retrieved the book.

"Oh, that was the book I was looking at! I asked Ginny if I could borrow it, but she said it wasn't hers. I like the title and it looks interesting," Luna said.

James gave half a smile. "It's for you anyways. It's yours to keep."

"Oh, thank you so much James!" Luna exclaimed happily.

Harry looked at Luna. "What did you call him?"

"James," Luna said. "That is his name."

Harry hummed.

Hermione decided that this moment was the best to speak up, "I told you about what he did, didn't I, Luna?"

Luna shook her head.

Hermione looked at James. "Do you mind doing it for her?"

James groaned again.

Ron and Ginny both glared at him. Ginny asked, "What's got your knickers in a twist?"

James huffed. "Well, excuse me for having a job and helping around the house, unlike you two! I'm just incredibly tired. Sorry for snapping at you all. Anyways, Harry, willing to be a volunteer?"

Harry narrowed his eyes. "No."

"Too bad, you haven't got a choice. Well, at least not now you don't." James got up to him and blew in his ear and then cast an 'engorgio' again.

"Here you go Luna," James said. "A wrackspurt."

Luna jumped in utter excitement. "Oh! I've never got to see a wrackspurt up so close and so big! I wonder what they like to eat, when they like sleep, what they do... I'm going home so I can study him!"

James smiled again and walked over to the bed in the room. He laid down and said "Have fun!" And then he fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

 **OoOoO**

Harry was met by Professor Dumbledore, who had a suspicious black hand, almost as if it was rotting away. It had a horrible scent of dead flesh too.

James looked at him worriedly, but Dumbledore only brushed it off, saying he wore something he was not supposed to.

Harry came back looking tired as hell and when James asked, he only said that he had a somewhat irritating conversation with the one of the new teachers at Hogwarts. Right now, he was upstairs with Ron, Hermione, and Ginny.

James shook his head. This would be a fairly calm year, except for the Battle of Astronomy Tower. Harry freaks out over Draco and practically stalks him on the Marauder's Map and that's about it.

He kept on reading his book, sitting contentedly next to a certain pretty one-fourth Veela. Fleur, of course.

"Better watch out for Phlegm in the room," Ginny said loudly. James sighed at his Mother's lack of tact.

Much quieter he heard, if he strained his ears, "Don't worry." Don't encourage her, Dad!

He looked at Fleur, who stiffened, almost unnoticeable. He could see the shine of tears in her eyes but she wiped them away quickly.

James' heart nearly broke at the sight of his favorite Aunt, who was there for him when he needed it.

He spoke in French (Fleur wouldn't let any of the Weasley-Potters go without learning French. "Being bilingual looks good on job applications," she said) to Fleur, " _Teenaged girls can be very catty, no?"_ James said, trying to make her laugh, if only a little.

Fleur looked up, surprise written all over her face. " _Ah, yes, they can be. I know how they are since I was one too,"_ She replied back.

James said comfortingly, " _I like Ginny to an extent, but she can be very rude to people she hates. Her humor is very mean as well, from what she just said. In fact, the whole Weasley family, save Bill, has been outright rude to you, and I find that kind of stupid. If it helps any I can talk to her and try to get her to be nicer to you. If she isn't, then don't listen to her because I for one think you are wonderful, as well as my family, even if they don't say it._ "

Fleur smiled brightly at James. " _Thank you very much, James! At least now I know that I have a few people who don't believe what they say about me. I do hope they'll come around, since I'm going to be marrying into the family in about a year._ "

James smiled back at her. " _I'm sure they will._ "

All the while, Ginny stared at the two angrily, sure that they were speaking behind their backs.

She confronted James when he was alone. Ginny came up to him, nose flaring, and anger in her usually warm brown eyes.

She asked him, "What was that about?! Speaking with her, probably behind our backs. And in French too so we wouldn't understand!"

James' anger flared; if there was anything he got from his mother, it was her temper. But he kept his cool, knowing that it wouldn't do any good to yell at her. She'd probably tell her mother, who would get on James' back for it. And if there is anything he wants to avoid, it would be the Weasley matron's ire.

"No, I was comforting her. Your family's treatment of her had me disappointed. You've been the meanest to her, saying horrible things about her and making mean jokes about her too," James said.

Ginny was about to speak but James cut her off, "I'm not done yet. Hermione has been regarding her as if Fleur is the scum of the earth. And, to be honest, I thought better of the both of you. Hermione as someone who is Harry's best friend; I know Harry's a good judge of character so she must be a good person too. And you as someone who made friends with someone who is thought of Hogwarts' looniest student."

Ginny huffed and crossed her arms, almost like a petulant child. "She's been a bitch, so I do rather think my actions are justified. Luna is a very sweet girl."

"One: no, it does not! Just because somebody is really fucking rude to you, doesn't mean you have to be rude to them! Just brush it off, and if they get physical, then fight back. Two: yes, she has been a bitch to you, I know that. But your family has been rude to her from the start, and what she has been doing is a defense mechanism! If you stop, then she'll stop. It's that easy. Three: don't judge people by their looks. You didn't even take the chance to talk to her and you've immediately thought of her as someone who is a bitch. By doing that, you've turned yourself into the very person you thought Fleur was. Come back to me when you've learned that and actually took the chance to talk to her," James said, looking at Ginny angrily. Sometimes, he really hated his mother, even the older version, for very justified reasons. James' is closer to his Dad. He could sometimes see why his Dad divorced his mother.

He walked up the stairs to his room leaving behind a regretful and thoughtful Ginny, only to find the Golden Trio and Al staring at him.

Fuck.

"So, by any chance, you didn't hear all of that did you?" James questioned nervously. "Because if you did… I'm screwed aren't I?"

"I'm not that disappointed in you," Al says, playing with his hands absentmindedly. "Because you're not wrong; the Weasley's haven't been that nice to Fleur. I just felt it wasn't _my_ place to put them in _their_ place."

James gave him something between a smile and grimace.

Hermione looked at him, a little remorseful. "I thought through what you said and how I've been acting towards her… Wow, I really messed up didn't I?"

"No… Not yet at least. You can still try and be nice to her, and gauge what kind of person she is. I think she's very compassionate and caring; you wouldn't believe how much she'd do for her family," James said.

Harry smiled. Kind of. It was half a smile. "I can. Damn, I've just been playing along with Ginny because I know how she can be. I could've stopped her, but I didn't."

Ron glared at Harry. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

Harry retorted, "Exactly what it means. Your sister isn't perfect, just like us three."

Ron glared at him and turned his head, not wanting to start a fight.

"You know," James said thoughtfully, tapping his chin. "'But I didn't' are the saddest words along with 'almost.'" James looked at Harry. "But in this case, you still have time. You can talk to her to her still. That aside, did you know end of the fifth year examinations are coming today? Well, for me, it's my grades for my mock final year exams."

Hermione jumped, frantic. "Are they really? Oh no! I probably did horrible! I know I missed that one question in Ancient Runes and another in Arithmancy and there's that one in Histo—"At this point James blocked her voice out, as Hermione started to babble to herself. Ron, Harry, and Al tried to console her repeatedly, but she continued worriedly anyways.

He walked down the stairs, while Ron, Al, and Harry dragged Hermione down.

Molly was walking towards them, with letters clasped in her hands.

Hermione ripped them out of Molly's hands—quite literally—and handed them out.

She looked at her own and frowned. Harry and Ron both looked relieved. If James thought back, he could remember that his Dad told him that he got seven passes.

James himself received ten passes and he got all O's on his mock exams and sighed inwardly. If he hadn't, he doesn't know if he would have gotten the job to be a part time intern for Rolf Scamander, Luna's husband. Then again, it's probably too late for that. Or too early. Hmm.

"Congratulations, Harry, Ron, Hermione," James said cheerfully. "Hermione, you got eleven passes I believe? One more than me."

"Huh? You mean you've gotten ten qualifications?" Hermione asked.

James laughed. "Like you're the only smart Gryffindor? On the contrary, you have Harry and Ron there too."

Harry blushed and averted his eyes, while Ron flashed a smile at him.

"Ah, well, I suppose. I tried to help them but it didn't work out much." Hermione said, frowning.

"Try being the operative word," James said. "People study differently. Some don't study at all. Just let people do their thing."

Hermione nodded slowly. "I...suppose."

"James! Look, look!" Al said excitedly. "I got nine passes! One less than you but... I also got all O's! Oh, and Lily; she did great too! Top of her year!"

"Awesome!" James gave him a tight hug. "What did Rose and Scorpius get?"

"Um, I'm pretty sure they both did the same as me, except they got five and seven passes respectively," Al said.

"I wonder what we can do to celebrate..." James said thoughtfully.

"We've been saving up haven't we? I heard that they're doing throwbacks at the movies! Wizard of Oz, To Kill a Mockingbird, Kite Runner, Hotel Rwanda, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas..." Al babbled.

"Alright, alright," James said, laughing. "I think one of them will have to do for now."

"Hotel Rwanda!"

"I think we have to let everybody know, at least and see if they want to go."

Al pouted.

James ruffled Al's hair. "That isn't going to work on me, Allie."

"It was worth a try," Al said. He leaned towards James and then whispered ever so quietly, "We can also go shopping for Harry's birthday present! I don't know what he'd like though. Maybe Rose, Scorpius, and Lily can help."

"Oh, right! I don't know what a younger Harry would like either..." James trailed. "I could draw him something."

"Simple but meaningful, huh?" Al said.

"Exactly!" James bobbed his head.

"When do you think we can go?"

"Tomorrow?" James said questioningly. "I don't have much to do anyways."

"Yeah, okay. Tomorrow it is."

 **OoOoO**

They did go, in the end. It truly was hard to find something Harry would appreciate. He doesn't like new things, rather he likes meaningful things, things that mean something to the person giving the gift _and_ to the person receiving it. That was hard, James will admit. It was easier when Harry actually knew that they were his children, because then, he knew that everything given to him from his kids meant something.

Harry was also a careful (okay, maybe only sometimes) person, so anything given to him anonymously is most likely to be treated with caution.

In the end, they went with a simple pendant, which had the outline of a stag. Within the stag, was a galaxy, filled with shades of royal blues and purples, shy pinks, and some dark green in there too. The background was a plain white. James, Rose, and Lily added multiple charms. It now could protect Harry from anything short of a killing curse. Scorpius 'embedded' the charms into the pendant so they would not disappear when the casters died.

James in the end decided to draw a picture of the Golden Trio sitting in the Gryffindor common room peacefully, each of them doing what they usually do. He cast a 'movens picturae' to the picture after Lily colored it in.

Al helped Molly in baking the cake (after many hours of begging; she knew he wasn't good at cooking, not baking), which was chocolate with the occasional swirl of vanilla. The frosting was cream cheese, and it was decorated with 'Happy Birthday Harry."

Well, it can go so many ways now.

 **OoOoO**

Harry truly wasn't expecting anything today. In fact, he even forgot what today was, thinking it will be another normal day of fooling around with Ron and studying with Hermione. But is anything ever normal for him? No. Today was a special day supposedly. It was his sixteenth birthday today and—he didn't even know sixteenth birthdays were special.

On the table was a cake and a few presents. It—it wasn't much but it means so much to him. That a family he's only known for five years celebrates something that wasn't ever meant to be celebrated (to him anyways).

Everybody—even the strange group of five, whom he has learned to love with their strange ways—is standing there beaming happily at him and singing 'Happy Birthday.' He could feel the tears in his eyes and he wipes them away quickly and smiles at them.

He eats the cake with them and talking merrily. He could see Ginny talking tentatively with Fleur and Molly doesn't seem to have gotten the memo as she is frowning at her. James is smiling happily at the two girls who are _finally_ getting along and he smiles unconsciously at him.

Then it was the present opening, most of them were books, those he could appreciate and then there was a plain slender box. He opens it carefully (what? it's a pretty box) and inside he sees a note on top.

He opens it.

Inside, it reads:

 _Happy Birthday Harry!_

 _We didn't know it was going to be your birthday today until a few weeks ago. We don't know you that well, but we still thought you deserved something; everybody does on their birthday! We hope you like it; we didn't know what to get you at first. Also, just so you know, there are charms to protect you from any spells thrown at you short of a killing curse. They'll last permanently; luckily we have an expert metal charmer on our side. We hope you have a really good birthday today, Harry._

 _Sincerely, Your Good Friends (hopefully)_

 _The Group_

He smiles. They didn't have to get him anything but they did.

Harry finally looks inside and he finds a simple, pendant, with a galaxy stag (it's the only way to describe it). It's not something he would probably wear, but he would never, ever, look a gift horse in the mouth. The first thing he does is wear it and he knows the group is smiling secretly. He almost closes it again but he catches sight of a colorful piece of paper. He takes it out and outwardly gasps and then laughs and then smiles.

It's a picture. Not just any picture though. It's one of his two best friends just sitting peacefully in their common room. Picture Hermione is reading next to picture Harry happily and picture Harry and picture Ron are talking animatedly (quite literally) about something. It's not perfect because Hermione's hair isn't as bushy and her nose is kind of crooked and Ron's eyes are a sky blue not a stormy gray. They're not mistakes though. They make the drawing better. He nearly splits his face with the grin he's wearing.

"What is it mate?" Ron asks curiously. Even Hermione is silently questioning him, obviously interested.

He hands it to them proudly. They look at in awe, unable to believe how realistically the scene has been captured, with all the emotions in it too.

"Oh, Harry, this is beautiful! Who gifted it to you?" Hermione asks.

"I think they wanted to stay unknown, but they're not anyone dangerous. I know them quite well actually," Harry answers.

After Ron and the others are done looking at it, he pocket it carefully; he wants to keep it safe. It's a peaceful moment that he'll hope he has a chance to experience soon enough.


End file.
